The Power of Choice: Redux
by Hey It's That Guy
Summary: He was a weapon of destruction and genocide, ignorant of his past, a victim of the Xiliens. When fate sends him, not to Earth, but to Remnant, the world of bloody evolution is never the same. Hmmm, evolution...Salem and Ozma were always looking for an advantage.
1. Awaken

**H****ello all, welcome to The Power of Choice: Redux. Please enjoy.**

**Chapter 1: Awaken**

_"What is it?"_

"_The beast our ancestors spoke of: Monster Zero."_

"_Attempting control would be foolish. If it were ever to break free of us….it would be best to leave it trapped on this barren planet."_

"_Let's a__t__ least take some samples, then. Our new creature is nearly finished d__eveloping__. Perhaps we could modify it further once the Keizer Energy has done its job."_

"_If it works we could have a new Monster Zero in the universe. No one could stop us."_

"_Not Zero. No. The ultimate Ghidorah. Monster X."_

"…_.you just want to name something after yourself, don't you?"_

"_Duh. Plus, if it works the High Command will __have no choice but__ to promote me. I __refuse to be o__verlooked__ any longer."_

Had the time had come once more for Monster X to be deployed into battle by his masters? Once more was the kaiju to be unleashed upon some planet that would try their hardest to resist his power? Once more would another civilization be made extinct and fade away into the annals of history? Such was his life, his designated purpose, as long as X remembered. The Xiliens used their advanced technology to violate his mind and he would have no choice but to comply with their demands. Whenever he was not necessitated, or he completed the destruction tasked to him, X was caged anew inside of this prison of metal and rock. Either to be stored on the Xilien homeworld awaiting another assignment or transported through the void of space following their fleet of ships.

X felt partial awareness of his condition when inside this rock, regrettably. Where he was, when he was, where he was going; none of those particulars were known to him. But the kaiju could never ignore the voices. The telepathic whispers to maim. Instructions to obliterate all opposition in the face of Xilien conquest. These were ever constant and, no matter how vigorously he tried, could not be shut out. The rare times he tried to fight the control he was disciplined harshly. Something was done that caused his mind to feel as if it were being ravaged by fire. Repeated exposure to this consuming anguish dispelled any last resistance he possessed, and thus his masters employed his powers unchecked.

His mind was currently being fed visions of the ones X would be slaying this time. Small, bipedal hairless apes that became the dominant species of their planet. These humans were to be the newest food source of the Xiliens. Once their major defenses had been eliminated, and the giant reptilian creature roaming their planet put down, the remaining humans would be rounded up and processed like cattle. X was to be their sword as always. The deafening voices commanded and he followed. Thus, unless he died, or his masters died, the cycle would renew without an end in sight.

How fortunate that destiny intervened and altered the course of history. For both the enslaved kaiju and a planet not yet visited by those from beyond the stars.

The asteroid that was his prison and transport was set on a path for the planet Earth. The Xiliens banking on using X, along with Gigan, to overwhelm Earth and Godzilla. Yet when another large celestial body collided with the Gorath Asteroid, an event so unlikely to happen it could truly be considered astronomical, it's destination was so jarringly altered even the occupant within felt the impact. Granted, X lay in an almost comatose state, but his red eyes opened for the most fleeting of moments as the asteroid spun in a completely different direction. How unfortunate for his masters that he would not be arriving to fight for them. As he drifted off into a nightmare-filled sleep, he wondered if he would ever see daylight again.

**Unknown time later**

Unbeknownst to the kaiju within, the Gorath Asteroid that housed him had once more become victim to an event astronomically small. Nigh improbable if one were to ask an esteemed person of science. Like, a real person of science, not one of those imbeciles that believed the planet was flat or some such nonsense. Those types could die in a hole.

You see, it was just the kaiju's luck that the prison surrounding him had been sent on a path that, eventually, crossed into a solar system containing multiple planetoids. Of course, in the history of the universe, innumerable celestial bodies traversed through countless systems. That was simply how existence in space was. An object would travel until their perpetual motion was either altered or arrested. Said object traversing the cosmos could, theoretically, move through space indefinitely without making contact with another. Hence, it was exceptional luck that this asteroid was headed straight for a planet distant enough from the system's star to be habitable.

The rock closed in on the lush planet, narrowly missing the lone moon hovering in orbit, and plunged into the atmosphere in a fiery blaze. Within seconds the Gorath Asteroid impacted one of the landmasses with such force a massive shock wave rippled outward in a path of devastation. Trees that were too close were either leveled or turned into large pillars of fire. The surrounding land sunk deeply into a fissure, tossing dirt and minerals of all sorts into the air to pelt the area for miles. The residue from the impact rose like a towering tsunami, slowly but surely blotting out the sun. The superheated rock of the asteroid made up for this loss of light with an ethereal glow. Its fire, and those encompassing it, lit up as if one had just stepped into hell. For nearly an hour this was the scene one would have stumbled upon, were they able to handle the noxious fumes in the atmosphere.

Eventually, the area returned to some manner of tranquillity. The fires burned themselves out, the smoke drifted into the sky and dissipated, and the asteroid itself cooled to the point that just a light bit of steam could occasionally be glimpsed before fading to nothing. Whilst the asteroid itself suffered slight damage by the crash to terrestrial land, it was otherwise still intact. No evidence whatsoever of the imprisoned occupant within.

Said occupant was doing everything he could to keep his eyes open. To rouse his fleeting awareness and escape from the rock around him. However, if the Xiliens did one thing right, it was building the prison he was kept in. Unless the asteroid was pierced to the hollow inside where his body rested, the legion of machines that forced his mind into a dazed state would continue to function. In a combat scenario, the asteroid was to orbit an inhabited world and the Xiliens would use a command from their mothership to separate the rock in such a way that Monster X would be released. Once his task was complete the halves could later be put back together and used for transport of their kaiju elsewhere.

With the Gorath Asteroid out of range from the Xilien ships, not to mention the Xilien fleet being annihilated by the King of the Monsters back on Earth, said command could not be fulfilled. The relatively undamaged outer casing of the asteroid also meant that the machines inside were not disrupted from their current task, therefore the protocol to awaken X would not start. In essence, the kaiju within was trapped in such a disorienting mental condition he could not summon the strength to force his way out. As his blood-red eyes started to close and his perception faded, Monster X felt one thing to be grateful about; the damn voices telling him to maim and kill everything in sight might eventually drive him mad, making escape completely irrelevant. If he was crazy, then would it matter what fate had planned for his life?

It was this change in the course of history, a change brought by such probability that to occur twice would be nigh impossible, which would one day shape the future of the planet he crashed on. For now, none would know of his existence, such as the primitive fauna that currently made the world their home. However, one day, when the top species could flirt with the ideas of war and chaos, whilst also keeping the red-eyed demons at bay, those that would come to call the planet Remnant would learn of this fearsome beast. For it would not be dark Queens or Wizards, Relics or warriors of Silver Eyes, but a monster of unimaginable power that would decide the future of all life on their world.

XXXX

"Ok everyone, we've made some great progress this week, and the bosses are delighted with the shipments sent. I spoke with Mr. Slate just this morning, and he said that if we could get at least two tons more shipped by the end of next week, we'll all be seeing some nice bonuses on our checks," The foreman of the dust mine, Mr. Flint Stone, allowed his workers a moment to whistle and yell out words of satisfaction, before raising his hand to get their attention again. "With the amount of Dust we've been pulling from this vein, I don't see us having any trouble making that quota. Despite the SDC trying to muscle their way in, the courts have upheld our claim and threatened them with sanctions if they keep harassing us."

His words evoked another chorus of cheers and smiles.

"I also got wind that if this site can pull off the projected growth they're hoping for, our crew may be getting picked to take the Mirr job the bosses are bidding on. So if extra pay for working in Vacuo sounds like something that interests you, come to see me next month once I get confirmation of the job." The man pulled up his watch, the time showing just passed 3:00, and waved his hand towards the mine's entrance. "That's all I have for you guys, so let's get back to work. Tonight, we'll celebrate in town. Drinks are on me." The yelling returned more intense than before. The crew of 30, a blend of human and faunus, grabbed their equipment and headed back into the hole dug into the mountainside.

Their current location was the Kingdom of Mistral, in one of the mountain ranges where cliffs dominated the landscape. Just two months before, a deposit of Dust had been discovered during an expedition by Mr. Slate's Dust and Mineral Company. It wasn't an excessively large pocket, but so far their crew had mined a steady supply that was keeping money in everyone's pocket. Strangely, however, while digging up quantities of Dust, the miners had also discovered slabs of fully formed and processed metals.

Steel, iron, and even a few rare slabs of pure titanium had been extracted from the mine. Mr. Slate requested that the discoveries be kept quiet for now, knowing that if any of the Kingdom's Councils found out, they'd send in their people and take over. Figure in the copper found here and there, and how odd it was that it almost looked to be bundled into wiring, this was turning into a very profitable, if strange operation. With the success that was projected from the current rate of extraction, the board members estimated that they would potentially make more money than the Schnee Dust Company in the next quarter. Such a thought, and the pride that would come with outdoing that mega-corp, kept the digging crew hard at work.

Today was the day the world changed.

In one of the tunnels that branched off from the main one, a group of three were drilling forward eagerly. Just before the crew was called to listen to the news from Mr. Stone, the trio had located another pocket of steel. This one, however, was markedly different from what had been mined up till that point. It was much stronger than anything they had found so far. The standard drill bits had shredded themselves to pieces within a minute of being pressed into the metal. After that, they tried a more durable bit, which itself only lasted about three minutes before turning into a smoking ruin. Now they had the strongest drill head they could find on-site and planned to get through one way or another.

When the drill made contact with the metal, sparks began to fly. At first, the drill continued to spin in place and make the same non-progress as the last two. Eventually, the drill head finally started digging into the metal, and slowly cut through more and more of the material. It took about fifteen minutes before the drill surged forward, having broken through to an empty pocket on the other side. The reason they were trying to drill the metal in the first place was so a high-torque winch could be attached and, after clearing the surrounding rock, the slab could be pulled out for study. Considering that the third drill head was diamond coated, the small group was eager to show off their prize to the boss.

The moment the drill was pulled from the hole a blast of hot, pungent air smacked the three men in the face. It wasn't so hot as to burn them, thank the Brothers, but it felt like they'd just stepped into a sauna while still clothed in their mining gear. And the smell?

"Fuck, that's rank. It's like a fish had sex with a skunk, then decided to eat rancid sauerkraut." The only faunus of the group so eloquently put.

After placing the drill on the ground beside them the leader of their group turned to glare at his fellow worker. "That's horrendous Wade. Thanks for the image that I won't forget for days."

"I told you to call me Mr. Wilson while we're working."

"Not a chance."

Now that the steam had time to dissipate they looked into the hole, and could see that behind the slab of metal it was nearly pitch black, save for what appeared to be the glow of several white lights scattered around. Perhaps some kind of fluorescent mushrooms or other plant life that lit up when in dark locations? The other side appeared to be an enormous, hollowed-out room that was so large one couldn't even see the top or bottom of the cavern. Although...was it their imagination or did there seem to be something filling up most of the chamber?

"_**Gggrrrrrrrrag"**_

That weird shape seemingly taking up space _moved_ just the slightest bit. What looked like a_ gigantic__ red eye_ slowly opened...and stared right at the four men.

XXXX

The haze slowly fell away and for the first time in eons, he could feel. He could smell. He could hear. So, his prison must have finally been breached in some way that allowed the machines to wake him. Or perhaps they just stopped working. Why did his body feel so _stiff_ though? How long had he been in stasis now? Awakening more by the second, his senses picked up small lifeforms nearby, and many a distance away. _Hmmm_. He didn't recognize the scent of whatever was close. Even if his masters had taken another form to disguise themselves, he would still be able to sense their true form within the false shell. No. This was something new. Something not encountered before.

His eyes finally opened, allowing him to see the inside of his prison chamber. With his superior eyesight, he could also see the hole in one of the access panels directly in front of him, and the small, ape-like creature looking right at him. Wait a minute...it looked like..._**DestrOy-the-huManS!**_...the voices! Although partially obscured due to the small size of the hole, X was rather sure that bipedal creature matched the _**Humans!**_ he was supposed to subdue. What was going on? What was happening?

_**-You are our, DEstROY, sword-**_

_**-Our Monster X-**_

Why would the voices not stop?! Struggling to move, the kaiju started to rise from the cradled position he was forced to take inside the asteroid. Looking all around X saw that, despite waking from his hellish coma, his metal prison refused to move. The groaning sounds indicated it was trying, but something was preventing him from the freedom he so desperately wanted.

X had to get out of here. _Now_. He pushed his body against what passed for the ceiling, but the prison held. No. No. NO. **NO.** He wanted out. This was not where he wanted to spend his first waking moments in Bagan knows how long. X slammed his forearm up, denting the metal above him, yet still, it held. Over and over his armored arm struck the ceiling, denting it further, but not breaking through. The kaiju's breathing quickened as panic began to grip his chest. **'Let me out. Let me out. ****Letmeout. Letmeout. Letmeoutletmeoutletmeout. LET. ME. OUT!'**

XXXX

"Run! Run! Get the hell out of here _now_!" As Wade ran past several other miners, screaming his head off, his group leader was calling out to anyone and everyone within eyesight or earshot to leave. "There's some kind of giant Grimm inside the mountain! Get out before the tunnels collapse!" His warning was validated by a rumbling that steadily grew worse. Broken rock began to fall from the tunnel ceiling, light fixtures either stopped working or hit the ground and shattered, and most startling was the loud growling that was coming from deeper in the tunnels. Dropping all of their tools and ignoring the carts of mined Dust, the miners ran as fast as they could towards the entrance.

Tasha Yar didn't look away from that graceful, saving light. Looking back would mean death. Falling rocks encompassed her from all sides, some close enough the dirt thrown up nearly blinded her. Still, her eyes refused to look away from her destination. Someone screamed behind her, crushed by the falling ceiling, but she couldn't afford to stop. Pushing her legs to their limit, Tasha exited the mine with such force she tumbled to the hard ground and struck her head on a toolbox. Blood trailing down her temple, Tasha was helped to her feet by Wade, she and everyone else staring in disbelief at the now collapsed mine. A split second too slow and she would have been crushed by rock and metal from above. It took Tasha a moment comprehend that several of her coworkers _had_ been crushed, unable to escape the mine in time. Tears started to blend with the blood on her dirty face.

The quakes seemed to finally stop, prompting Wade to speak his wise words. "I think we'll be fine now. Unless that Grimm is some kind of giant that eats rocks for breakfast. Like a Rock Biter! That's a good name."

Everyone glared death at the idiot for opening his mouth, callous his words were. Before anyone could chastise him for his insensitive, and cliched, tempting of fate, a large hand burst from the mountain their mine was dug into. A second hand joined it, sections of earth sailing through the sky. Workers scattered and ran for cover in the shade of massive loaders and excavators. This saved many of them from a gruesome death, while an unlucky few were turned into bloody smears in the dirt. A loud, tiger-like growling was heard throughout the dig site, causing a few brave souls to poke their heads out and see what was happening now.

The top of the mountain broke apart violently, thrown off the head of the giant Grimm now free of its prison. The monster's very appearance caused some of the miners to faint. Skeletal armor coated a good portion of its muscular body, skin blacker than the void of space. A strange, elongated skull topped with two sharp horns. What appeared to be two half-skulls attached at its shoulders. A long, forked tail swaying in agitation, thin like a whip waiting to snap. 120 meters of demonic monster. It was staring at its hands, which were shaking horribly, the creature itself breathing so fast it appeared to be having a panic attack.

Accepting this was the day she died, Tasha pulled out her scroll and set it to record. "Tasha's Log, entry 57. We've awoken a Grimm larger than any I've ever heard about. If anyone gets this message, please, contact my sister, and give her my account with First Mistralan Bank." She couldn't stop crying, praying that someone would be lucky enough to see this video and pass it on. Her voice cracked as the monster stopped looking at its hands and turned a red gaze over the humans and faunus within the quarry, still breathing heavily. "Ishara, I love you more than anything. I'm sorry I didn't get to see you graduate from Haven, but this is how life is sometimes." As the monster kept looking at them she whimpered just the slightest when it grabbed its head, almost like it was in pain.

"For whoever gets this message we're at the Turkana Mine, in northern Mistral. We've been here for two months digging into the mountain for Dust and other materials. Looks like we found some kind of Grimm too. As big as it is, please, send everythin-huh?" Her crying words ended when the monster stopped eyeing them. It turned its gaze to the cloudy sky above and levitated, yes _levitated_, out of the remains of the mountain it had been trapped within. Without sparing the humans a second glance the Grimm fully emerged from the earth around it and flew south. Not once did it attack or even turn to look at them again. It just...left.

She would need to change her pants before the smell of urine set in.


	2. Oh

**Here we have ****the first example of just how different things are from the previous version. Enjoy**

**Chapter 2: Oh**

Monster X's massive form soared through the cloudless sky above Mistral with no real destination in mind. The kaiju was away from his prison, sun warming his hardened skin. In the end, nothing else mattered. The trees below passed in an unfocused blur, failing to capture his attention. X's body felt a little relief while in the air, allowing him a chance to think.

How much time had passed while he was asleep? What planet had he landed on, and where were the Xiliens? Nothing good would come from his escape if the violent aliens showed up to recapture him. Enslavement meant more death. They might even punish him for daring to leave them. Finally looking at the environment below, X decided to worry about his masters later. It would serve no purpose other than upsetting him further.

**-Why fight what you were made to be?-**

_-Your purpose is clear.-_

-We are the end of life.-

_"You are the conduit. Free us!"_

Grabbing his head, X tried to silence the trio of voices crawling into his mind. The world around him became irrelevant at that point, greens and browns mixing together from the pain his skull started experiencing. Distracted and hurt, the kaiju began to lose altitude. Impacting the earth would not harm his body. The ones truly in danger happened to be a band of terrorists traveling through the forests below.

XXXX

"How much further before we can set up camp?" his feline companion asked while leaning against a pine tree, rubbing her sore and aching feet.

The 17-year-old bull faunus pulled out a compass, checking that their small group was still heading east to Lake Matsu. He looked to the paper map they'd brought along to compare the last position noted. It appeared they were still on course, with perhaps 3-4 miles between them and the large lake.

"45 minutes, maybe an hour if the terrain is rough. I'd like to have access to water and a supply of meat. Setting up on the lake's edge will provide both."

Blake couldn't fault his logic there, plus, when had she ever said no to fish? Yet, deep down, something else dragged on her mind. Lately, her time with the White Fang had become rather...hard to handle. Once upon a time, Blake's days consisted of protests, sit-ins, spreading the word about businesses that discriminated against faunus. She pined for those days now, compared to the constant violence Adam brought with him.

Theft, sabotage, murder. Adam said so long as the humans oppressed their people, such methods were acceptable choices for the White Fang and faunus as a whole. Impressionable as she once had been, her 15-year-old current self began to see her mentor's true nature. He was angry, suffering from years of abuse by bigoted humans. Blake remembered finding Adam staring at his scarred eye in a river once, so engrossed with the sight he didn't notice her approach. She never forgot the tears that trailed down his cheeks, even when he furiously rubbed them away. They never spoke about that moment again.

Blake was about to ask if they could take a small break to rest her feet, but she was interrupted by the sound of growling from the trees around them. Everyone tensed as they drew their weapons, eyes scanning the woods all around. Adam's grip on Wilt grew tighter and tighter, a bead of sweat disappearing behind his mask. The tension finally broke when a Beowolf came flying into their midst, smacking against a tree with the force of an 18-wheeler. The beast was turning to ash before it hit the ground.

The cause of said Grimm's demise made herself known to the faunus group, sliding along the grass using another Beowolf like a skateboard. She looked to be Adam's age, with tan skin and brown hair cut into a bob, topaz eyes focused on the Grimmboard beneath her. The girl came to a stop in front of Adam, dirt plastering his worn boots. In an instant, the stranger brandished a long staff, tipped on each end with a Dust crystal.

The end with the Wind Dust glowed vividly as the unknown girl swung her weapon, separating the Grimm's head with no resistance. Her improvised ride fading away, the girl finally looked up to her bewildered audience. Then she grinned, "Hello there."

"Who the hell are you?" he asked, drawing Wilt in a flash.

"Wow, rude much? I just killed two grimm for you, and this is the thanks I get?" her smile only widened when Adam visibly grit his teeth. "Name's Amber Saegusa, Huntress extraordinaire and your savior. You can say thank you, now."

Steam started to pour out of Adam's ears by this point. The swordsman was about to give Amber a thorough ass-chewing, had Blake not swung Gambol Shroud in front of him. "Let's deal with the Grimm first, then we can worry about her."

Indeed, a horde of Ursa and Beowolves charged towards the group of six, along with two _l__arge _Deathstalkers clicking their pincers. The number of Grimm looked to be close to 50 or 60 individuals. Everyone prepared for a tough fight, but then Blake's cat ears started twitching, a strange sound nearly overwhelming her eardrums. It sounded like a rock soaring through the air, amplified a hundred times over. She wasn't the only one to notice the noise, her fellow White Fang looking in every direction for the source too. Even the Grimm had stopped their advance, turning every which way but up.

Blake finally looked towards the sky, the sound now loud enough her ears nearly bled. Her jaw dropped in terror, unable to look away from the figure plunging out of the clouds. "What is _that_?!"

The impending battle was hindered when the giant monster landed with a harsh crash. It fell to hands and knees, grabbing at its skull in discomfort. The vibrations of its arrival were felt all around with the force of a small earthquake, sending the local wildlife running in primal fear. The armed group fell on their collective asses, weapons dropping out of numb hands.

Golden energy arced off the creature's body, explosively striking trees, the ground, and even a few Grimm that rushed forward to attack. Unlike the rest of the environment, the Grimm hit by the light seemed to absorb it. Their twitching bodies fell to the forest floor, energy dancing across their prone forms.

The giant monster paid no attention to anything going on around it. Struggling to focus, it crawled away from their location, knocking down every tree in its path. It appeared to be heading towards the lake, giving absolutely zero fucks about any of the chaos left behind. Grimm jumped onto the monster, trying in vain to hurt it, which only lead to more of the soulless beings hitting the ground in a seizing mess.

A fair number of Grimm ignored the kaiju in favor of attacking the six recovering from their stumble. One of the masked Fang, a young man covered in snake scales, was taken down before he could bring his machine gun to bear. His agonized screams kicked everyone into gear, bullets flying through the air. Blake fired her weapon at a charging Beowolf in vain, the small caliber not bothering it.

"Not today," switching to melee, Blake brought her blade up to block the claws coming down. Her knees nearly buckled from the force, but a twist of her arm parried the blow. With another twist she buried her blade into the monster's neck, its growl turning into a gurgle. The crackle of trampled leaves to her left triggered her next move. The cat girl had barely turned when claws tore into her body. Instead of a bloody corpse, however, she faded away into shadow as her semblance took the attack.

The new Beowolf stood confused for a moment, giving Blake a chance to use its head as a platform to jump to a thick branch above. Why fight when she could keep out of reach? Standing her ground to fight left her vulnerable. Sharp, golden eyes surveyed the battle, watching as the four below continued to fight against an ever-growing number of foes. Trifa and Yuma kept up a steady stream of bullets, but the Grimm appeared mostly annoyed by the Dust rounds. As for the other duo...

"Behind you!" Two Ursa, approaching Adam's unprotected back, were set on fire with a swing of Amber's staff. The bear-like beasts groaned pitifully, falling over dead a second after.

"I don't need your help _human_!" The bull punctuated this by slicing through a third Ursa, then using Blush to shoot a leaping Beowolf out of the air. Adam arrogantly turned to her, choosing to smirk in supposed superiority. "See? You think just cause I'm a faunus I can't-" His poor decision to smart off was rewarded with the Deathstalker that stayed in the area smacking him away.

His trip was halted when he smashed into a boulder, aura flickering dangerously low. Blush fell from numb fingers, the tip of Wilt's blade stuck into the earth to keep the boy standing. Adam's ribs ached bad, the coppery taste of blood made him want to vomit. Raising his head, the faunus saw Amber leaping onto the back of the Deathstalker, stabbing the flaming end of her staff into its head. Trifa and Yuma were still holding their own, now using shotguns instead of assault rifles. As for Blake...

"Blake, where are you?" he'd just managed to stand up to full height when the smell of rotten meat filled his nose. The jaws clamping onto his shoulder felt like he rolled over a bear trap. Wilt's pommel smacked the Beowolf in its masked face in desperation. Freed from its grasp, he tried to move away, to establish a superior position. As Adam turned he blocked a swipe from the same Beowolf, absorbing the force with Moonslice, and repaid the Grimm by cutting it in two.

"Blake!" his victory was short-lived when yet another Beowolf attacked. Had he been in a better state Adam would have either dodged or sliced it to countless pieces. Aura dropped so quickly, however, the boy was tackled to the ground. Struggling against the beast, he managed to roll onto his back. He braced his booted foot against the Grimm's chest, seeking to create enough space to swing Wilt into an eye or maybe the throat.

His weapon was torn from his grip, knocked away by another foe. "Ahhhh!" he couldn't hold back the scream this time when an Ursa locked its teeth around his right bicep.

"Blake, I need you! _Help_!" Adam couldn't marshal the strength to throw either Grimm off. He needed his partner _now_. But the sound of Gambol Shroud slicing flesh and bone never came. "...Blake?"

He couldn't hear the crack of his humerus breaking. His mind so focused on _why _Blake was nowhere to be found, the pain nearly didn't register. Compared to the agony of the girl he trusted to watch his back disappearing, losing his dominant arm was an afterthought. For all of five seconds, at least.

Adam's arm, what remained of it, surged with pain the likes of which he'd only felt once before. The Ursa tearing his arm off _hurt, _like when those SDC dogs had branded his eye. He lost all strength to fight then. Blake was gone, his arm was gone, his life would soon be gone. Not from fighting against oppressive human scum, but to a couple of random Grimm in a no-name forest. Because he was arrogant and just _had _to smart mouth that girl.

He suddenly found the weight on his chest gone. Amber stood above him, Trifa and Yuma flanking her. Her eyes shone with light, and the world _shifted_. She floated into the air, wind swirling around her in a bubble. The human brought her hand forward, lightning following her command and striking every Grimm in the area.

One by one a Beowolf or Ursa was struck, falling over dead instantly. Amber's face was like a vengeful goddess, mouth turned with a wild snarl. Adam had never seen anything like it in his life. Such power and ferocity, all used to protect him. No. To protect all of them.

"Adam! Stay with me, man! Come on, say something," Yuma slung his shotgun, letting it rest against the assault rifle. The bat faunus lifted Adam up, ripping his mask off to look at his eyes. Adam would reprimand him later if he remembered to. He wasn't sure he was going to live much longer, though.

"We got you, boss. Just stay awake," Trifa grabbed his arm, which was pumping out his blood fast. She ripped a tourniquet out of her rucksack, not caring that her weapon was laying in the dirt. "Yuma, get him talking! Keep him coherent."

"Hey, you know, I've never seen you without your mask before. I think a pair of sunglasses would suit you really well." Yuma tried to keep his voice jovial. Better to fake joy than admit panic, after all.

Adam wished the smell of blood would go away. The metallic aroma made him want to gag. He winced when Trifa tightened the bar on the tourniquet as far as it would go. That would stop the bleeding for now, not that he cared in such a delirious state.

"She's kicking a lot of ass," Adam babbled, mesmerized by all the lightning and ice Amber was throwing around. Grimm dropped left and right, but the human refused to stop. He wished she were a faunus. Such power was awe-inspiring, and a little hot if he was being honest.

Yuma propped him against his knee, trying to keep him from falling unconscious. "Yea, she is. Our bullets weren't doing much against them, but she's had no issue taking them out."

"Where's Blake? I...I want to see her." Adam swore that his voice wasn't wavering. Had to be the blood loss, and he wouldn't admit otherwise.

Trifa finished bandaging his bloody stump with gauze, wrapping it twice-over with her webbing so the chance of the dressing coming undone lessened. She nervously looked at Yuma, not sure how to explain what happened.

Yuma sighed heavily but trudged forward. It would help no one to hide the truth from the redhead. "She...we saw her jump into the trees above us. We haven't seen her since. I think she ran away."

Adam stared into oblivion trying to process what they'd just told him. It didn't help that his brain wasn't firing on all cylinders from blood loss. His partner, his _love_. Gone? "Oh."

He just wanted to sleep. Or maybe die. Either outcome sounded good to Adam right now. It was so quiet now, had the human finished slaughtering Grimm?

"How is he?!" Amber slid into his view, her eyes shining in concern. Her weapon was collapsed and put away. A fine layer of sweat covered her skin, but she had no visible injuries. Good, it meant he wouldn't feel bad about what he was about to say.

"I could've...fought'em myself."

"Uh-huh. I saw how you were doing a fine job of that." Amber rolled her eyes at his bravado, then handed him Wilt and Blush. The weapon was sheathed and appeared to be in ok shape. "You're welcome, by the way."

Adam's half-lidded glare started to lessen, looking down at his sword, then to his maimed arm. The faunus sighed heavily, anger finally dissipating as reality set in. "Thanks."

Thanking a _human _was the hardest thing Adam had done in recent memory. He didn't like owing his life to her. Strength was a value that Adam coveted. The training he endured for years never failed him. If anything, he failed himself. This couldn't happen again.

His grumbling gratitude drew a smile from Amber, who held out her hand. "Let's try this again. I'm Amber Saegusa, Huntress Extraordinaire. And who are you?"

Adam blanched at the olive branch being offered. His instincts, his memories of what humans had done to faunus the world-over, screamed to smack the hand away. Humans couldn't be trusted. Their kind enslaved his people once, then tried to banish them to Menagerie. Today equality was spoken of as if it were fact, but the reality couldn't be further from the truth.

Yet...she could have left the three of them to die. This human had enough strength that leaving the area was an easy option. Instead, she fought to protect them. Trifa and Yuma looked alright, and though he was missing his arm, he was alive. Because she chose to do the right thing. Much like _Blake _chose to abandon them to die.

Perhaps, then, it was time for him to take a risk. To make a different choice than any before in his life.

His hand grasped hers firmly as his tired eyes locked with her optimistic ones. "Adam Taurus. Freedom Fighter and...reluctant ally."_'Ally'_, he mused to himself, _'I guess things could be worse.'_

An explosion of golden energy came from where that giant beast had crawled to. The light show actually sent Yuma into a yelping mess, holding up his hands to protect his body. It wasn't needed, seeing how the light faded as fast as it appeared.

"Ok, you can shut up now." Trifa covered Yuma's mouth with her hand. She nodded in relief, then her face slowly morphed to disgust. She pulled her hand away so fast you'd think it was burned. The spider girl wiped Yuma's saliva off on her pants, looking like she wanted to smack him. "Why'd you have to lick my hand? So nasty."

"That's what you get." Yuma looked away, arms crossed like a petulant child. Webbing covered his face as a reward for his grossness.

A giggle. A sound Adam didn't expect to hear considering their current surroundings. Looking back to the girl still holding his hand, Amber's face is lit up with a smile, eyes shining like topaz gems. Despite her race, he can't deny she is beautiful.

"You guys are funny. How about we stick together for a while?" She punctuates her question by gently pulling Adam to his feet. He's still light-headed, and his legs nearly give out, but Amber's lithe form keeps him steady.

Her strength is welcome, hard as it is to admit. She has done nothing to warrant any suspicion or hostility. He knows this, even if deep down his hatred demands he strikes her down. He glances over to his severed arm, a feeling he can't identify filling his chest.

So, once more, he makes a difficult choice. "Ok. We'll have security in numbers. I won't be any help until I heal, and I'll have to train to use my left hand comfortably."

The human nodded in appreciation, her gaze checking over all three of them. Then she turned to look at the body of the boy covered in snake scales. Her happy demeanor vanished seeing his bloody corpse. Even with all her Maiden powers, she wasn't able to keep everyone safe. Had she just been a little stronger, a little faster, the boy would be alive.

"I'm sorry about your friend."

The three White Fang looked over towards their fallen comrade, his throat torn out in a bloody mess. They stared at him for a moment, before all of them shrugged their shoulders. Seeing Amber's disgust for disregarding the boy's death, Yuma held up his hands trying to reassure her.

"Just give him a minute, honest. Being a snake faunus, Plesskin can fix himself by shedding." Yuma explained as he moved closer to the body, giving it a light kick in the shin.

Amber was close to punching the bat-winged boy, right up until Plesskin's body twitched. A set of slimy fingers poked out of his mouth, and then things got _weird_. The fingers pulled Plesskin's mouth apart like a snake preparing to eat their prey. His mouth opened nearly 3 foot wide and out crawled a slime-covered, and healed, Plesskin.

His shoulder-length mullet clung to his head due to the slime, but Amber got a good look at his face and wide eyes. He was handsome, blue-eyed, tanned, a five o'clock shadow, and somehow wearing the same clothes his shed...skin?...wore. Plesskin panted as if he'd just finished a triathlon, leaning back on his heels.

Then he grinned, waving his hand lazily as if they hadn't just witnessed a man puke himself up. "Kept you waiting, huh?"

Was this reality? Amber wasn't sure, but it was pretty fun so far.


	3. Pathways

**Hope everyone is doing well is these trying times. Don't panic, but don't blow if off like it's nothing, either. Just be calm and take care of each other. This took a little longer than I wanted due to school and stress from work. Slowly working my way through studying to be a vet assistant. Not doing so bad so far.**

**This extra time, however, has given me the chance to really hash out plot and character details that I've wanted. So, like several of you have said, I'm taking my time to put out a better product. No EA tactics if I can help it. Though, I do want the next chapter out in the next month, if possible.**

**Chapter 3: Pathways**

The higher ground gave her the advantage. A moment to analyze the battle and pick the best targets. If she dropped down with her weapon pointed like a spear, Gambol Shroud would easily pierce the skull of any Grimm below. Well, the Alpha might survive, considering how thick their armor usually is. Yes! She had a plan of attack. Now all Blake had to do was pick a target.

Or did she?

This was _not_ what she imagined her life would be like when she'd first joined the White Fang. She was not naive. She knew that standing up for her rights as a Faunus would ruffle a lot of racists in power. Blake expected, anticipated, having to fight with her back against the wall. But everything she'd worked towards, everything she cried for, _bled_ for, it wasn't the same.

Where once she would wake up and feel immense pride to be another sword, another voice of justice in the White Fang, now every day began with near dread. Her days went from loud protests and long sit-ins, with the occasional liberation of a Schnee labor camp, to death threats against businesses serving both races, kidnapping people with the barest connections to the SDC, and watching her Fang brethren murder people that wronged them in the slightest.

Adam was always in a foul mood now. No matter what goal they accomplished, it did little to alleviate his pain. Free the Faunus from a work camp? There was still more to save. Hold a human for ransom and get away with the Lien? It was never enough money and it was a 'mistake' not killing the human. Murder 5 people involved with keeping the Faunus oppressed? Adam would complain about how he wasn't able to spill _more_ blood.

Blake couldn't remember the last time Adam smiled, so full of anger and despair. Ever since his eye was branded 2 years ago, the boy she grew to love had been dying a slow death. Nothing stopped his decline. Nothing improved his attitude at all. Even when he and Blake made love, Adam did not smile or whisper sweet nothings into her ears. Adam Taurus was a man completely consumed by grief.

This could not continue. Blake did not want to walk along this self-destructive road any further. The daughter of Chief Belladonna wanted the world to see her as a strong Faunus woman, judged for her actions and compassion. Being feared and bowed to by people afraid she would kill them was the complete opposite. This cycle of hatred had to end.

"Blake, where are you?" Adam always taught her to never take your eyes off the enemy, otherwise, death was the only partner you'd have. Yet, for some stupid reason, he felt the need to smart mouth the human girl that was helping fight off Grimm. A Beowolf sank its teeth into his shoulder, struggling against his Aura. A moment later Adam freed himself from its jaws, bisecting the beast at the waist.

"Blake!" Her weapon came up automatically, intent to rescue him from the second Beowolf with a well-aimed bullet. All she had to do was squeeze the trigger and Adam would be able to get on his feet. Blake hesitated, Gambol Shroud shaking in her grip. Her partner managed to hold back the beast with his boot, ready to swing Wilt into its face. Then an Ursa flanked his right, knocking the sword out of his hand.

By now her hand was shaking so bad that any bullet fired would either miss or hit Adam. Blake felt her eyes tightening, golden orbs starting to glisten with building tears. She had to make a choice now! The Ursa had clamped down on Adam's right arm, trying to shake him like a toy. The Beowolf's claws tore at the young man's chest, going for his heart. Any moment now and her partner could die.

"Blake, I need you! _Help_!"

Blake Belladonna collapsed her weapon and jumped to another thick tree branch. Then another. And another. Each thud of her foot on wood may as well have been a bomb to her ears. Her vision blurred fiercely from the tears pooled in her eyes. This was it. This was her chance to break away from everything. She was 15-years-old, the daughter of Menagerie's Chieftain; a skilled warrior that wanted to fight for good.

"...Blake?"

No! Adam made his choice, just as she was making hers. Every time she pleaded with him to do better, to be a better man, he ignored her or scoffed at her 'idealism'. No matter what she said, or did, Blake could not get through to him. Adam was an angry young man. This was for the best. With how large the horde of Grimm was getting, Adam would not be walking away. It pained her deeply, especially since it meant Yuma, Trifa, and that unknown girl would also die.

Perhaps that was for the best. Adam refused help. Blake couldn't compromise her morals any longer. Maybe she..._could_ she return to her parents? After what she had done, running off to fight in the White Fang, would they accept her?

_'__But what if they ask about Adam?'_

To admit that she left him to die against Grimm would not be ideal. Ghira always spoke of being there for your Faunus brothers and sisters, more so in their times of need. What would he say if he knew she abandoned her squad? And the looks her mother Kali would give? If she returned to her family, only one choice was available to her.

XXXX

_**Lake Matsu, Shoreline**_

The Hairless Apes were left behind, fighting a group of the Armored Ones, while he crawled away in agony. The pain in his head was like pure fire traveling through the blood vessels of his brain. He forced himself to his hands and knees, leaning his head into the ground hoping to relieve the pain. The agony within his skull struck so fiercely, it literally knocked the wind out of him. Flying Armored Ones circle his body aggressively, launching razor-sharp feathers or scratching with deadly talons, in a fruitless attempt to harm him. He almost wished their physical assault would do something, _anything_ if only to distract him from the mental suffering.

The bipedal Armored Ones try to scratch and bite into him, doing nothing to his hardened skin. If anything, they were causing harm to themselves, breaking teeth and claws with each attempted attack. The Armored Ones failed to hold his attention, occupied as it was by the scorching fire in his mind. The fire is all he can truly focus on.

Not the trees falling before his bulk. Not the Armored Ones and their ineffectual attacks against his body. The pain is near the point of overwhelming his motor functions; each crawling movement like being on a celestial body with gravity thirty times the norm. Then he heard the voice again.

'_You are no longer needed'_

'We think it's time'

'**For Ghidorah to stretch o****ur**** wings'**

His right hand started to spasm uncontrollably. The width of his forearm widened, the white armor protecting him briefly flashing gold. His clawed hand is trying to turn into a meaty paw. X slammed it to the forest floor in some vain hope to stop the spreading transformation. If the thing in his mind takes control, the kaiju may never see the light of day again.

X's head suddenly erupted in pure agony. The bones in his jaw and the back of his skull broke with a _crack _as the shifting begins. This was bad. If he doesn't stop it now, a pair of wings are going to force their way out of his back. He _hates_ turning into that thing. Anger began to flow through him, a creeping desire to destroy. The Entity wants to make him a passenger in his own body. While under the control of his masters he was unable to resist this change; a slave.

'_**This time will be no different worm'**_

This time _would_ be different! He sank his teeth into the dark flesh on the underside of his wrist. The pain is minor, all things considered, but that was the point. The surge of nerves being stimulated relieved the acid in his mind for just a few seconds, yet those seconds are all he needed. A fleeting moment for him to lock onto the Keizer Energy within his body. The power within him is familiar, like the warmth of a nearby star. It has been with him since...as long as X can remember.

Keizer Energy gave him the ability to manipulate gravity in and around his body. His ability to fly isn't actual flight, not truly, but more forcing gravity to move him off the ground. Whenever he focused the Energy into his eyes it discharged in the form of Graviton Beams, guided by gravity to strike anything within sight. Even his body itself is enhanced by this power. Hunger does not bother him. Thirst has never pained his throat. He need not fear the vacuum of space.

X's body is perfect because of Keizer Energy. He practically _is_ the physical form of Keizer Energy, being its host for so many decades before his crash onto Remnant. The Power belongs to _him_, not the thing his masters forced him to become. All he needs is just...a...moment.

'_**You are nothing!'**_

X can feel his Keizer Energy pull back from his arm slowly. The muscle started thinning back down, an odd sensation all things considered. Like water soaking into a pile of sand. What a strange feeling tickling the nerves in the tissue of his brain. Only one option before him: Send the power out. No idea what it would do, but X just couldn't trust himself to not lose control. So he let it go.

The Keizer Pulse erupted like a collapsing star. Golden light blinded him, and, it might've been his imagination, but the life-force of the Armored Ones seemed to appear to his senses. Twas like a candle in his hand. Would it be right to destroy them, mindless slaves that they were? It wouldn't be hard. A quick twist of gravity around him, and they would disappear. If he let them live, however?

Armored Ones dropped to the ground before him. What a wondrous light show, twitching as the sun began to come down. His first real choice in a _long_ time. The Masters chose for him despite his wishes to be let free. He wondered where they've gone, and while he's at it, what planet is this?

'_It doesn't matter'_

'Another time'

'**We are inevitable'**

Beaten back and it still tried to intimidate? A sign of weakness if he'd ever seen one.

The silence in his mind was novel, serene. X enjoyed it quite a bit. Destroying civilizations or comatose in the asteroid, never before was life calm and peaceful like this. A liberal amount of gravity carried his body to the surface of the large lake. X couldn't remember the last time he felt cool liquid touch his skin. Time to himself is more precious than a diamond. Sleep is something he no longer fell victim to, but it sounded very appealing.

The demon locked away, for now, X's mind was quiet. Gazing at the fading colors the planet's atmosphere provided, the question the kaiju pondered is, 'What now?'. Only 45 minutes of freedom, and he had no clue what to do with it. The Armored Ones watched him from the shore, but why would that matter? X figured that some rest can't hurt. He was _exhausted_ from containing the Keizer transformation, and it's the first time ever that he's controlled himself.

The Masters had yet to appear, not that the Dragon Kaiju was in the mood to willingly be enslaved again. No. X would take his own life if enslavement was to be his fate. Movement in the corner of his vision startled him. On the shore two of the Canidae Armored Ones appeared to be fighting, or playing...or mating? He is not an expert on primitive behaviors, so it could be any of them.

A nap looked highly acceptable to X now. He just needed to let his eyes close and his focus fade. What's the worst that could happen?

XXXX

It blinked as the world became clear. It looked left and right, seeing others that stood around confused. What were these sensations? It's fur moved from the wind, the skin underneath _tickled_ by the cool breeze. It..._liked_ that. Unknown aromas filled its nose, and it found them to be..._pleasant_. What was going on? It turned around, eyeing the giant thing on the water. The giant thing wasn't doing anything to indicate it would attack, so it felt _safe_ enough to move closer.

The ground beneath its paws is so _soft._ It wouldn't mind laying down and rolling around later. The edge of the water is before it, and the being felt compelled to look upon the surface. Looking back was...another like those around. It jumped back, _frightened_, by the other appearing so suddenly. Teeth are bared, a sharp growl rumbling from its throat. If it shows _aggression_ that should make the other back down.

Behind it, some of the others are biting and clawing each other. It is too focused on the water to pay them any attention. Teeth still bared, one paw ready to strike, it confronts the being in the water. It doesn't move, neither does the other. In fact, the other is doing the same as it. It slowly moves it's paw to the water, the other mimicking the action. The paw is pulled back, and once more the other copies it.

It brings the paw to its head, and when the other again does the same, a realization is finally made. The other was….it. Is this what it looked like? It runs the clawed paw across its skin, tenderly feeling the bone adored with red vein-like designs. Looking to the left, it stiffened when one like it approached. The other was not as tall or stocky, slimmer than itself, but that didn't mean it wasn't dangerous.

They eyed each other for several moments, with it unsure what to do since the other wasn't attacking. Slowly, _shyly_, it reaches out to the other. The other flinches, _afraid_, but it persists. The back of its claws rubs against the other's face. Gentle strokes, a _curious_ gesture, touching bone and fur. The other's ears twitched _happily_, face leaning into the claws. This experience of touch, the intimacy, was..._nice_.

And it wanted _more_.


	4. You Got A Friend In Me

**Chapter 4: You Got A Friend In Me**

Amber listened close for any noise that moved in the group's direction. She was guarding their six, hands white-knuckled around her staff's smooth shaft. Birds chirped happily in the canopy above, without any care for the armed group below. Their ongoing symphony was rather soothing, slowing her pulse to a comfortable thrum. Sweat dripped down her brow into her eyes from the humidity, the salty liquid burning and causing her eyes to close involuntarily. She wiped them into the short sleeve of her cream colored shirt to clear her vision. This momentary distraction allowed her to take her eyes from their surroundings and turn them to observe her present company.

The tall boy, Yuma, appeared to be leading the group confidently, but she couldn't tell if his stiff shoulders were due to discipline or fear. The awesome looking bat wings on his back were also pulled in tight, so it was most likely nerves keeping the faunus tense. The knocking of a woodpecker drew his attention left, letting her get a good look at his face. His chocolate brown hair was swept back nicely, looking like a crest of thick knives protecting his head. He had smooth mocha skin that went well with his gray colored eyes. His goatee was neatly trimmed, though she could make out a bit of scruff growing in around it.

His clothing choice of black and gray pants and a black and gray long-sleeve shirt confused her. Why would he wear something like that? The windless air felt like it was ninety-five degrees. With his current outfit he should be sweating like a pig, and that was before adding in the overbearing humidity. His right forearm was partially exposed and everything from the elbow down was uncovered on his left arm, plus he was wearing a black glove of unknown material on his right hand. None of those clothing selections were conducive to the Mistralian wilderness.

A strap was attached to each shoulder and his sides with a gold button, though they appeared to just be for looks as nothing was being secured by them. The zipper that followed his sternum stood out amongst the dark material. It was an eye-catching gold that demanded your attention to Yuma's chest. His choice of footwear were sturdy looking black boots suited for outdoor activities. The weapons he carried were rather lackluster compared to his sorta-stylish outfit. Across his back was a carefully slung shotgun and a brown hiking pack, while in his hands he wielded a basic looking assault rifle.

_ 'Not exactly the kind of weapons to have when you're deep in Grimm territory, but it's better than nothing I guess.' _It made Amber wonder just who this group of faunus was. Were they a Mistralian militia? A mercenary group? Hopefully she'd get the chance to ask them soon.

"So are we just gonna ignore the whole 'giant Grimm falls out of the sky having a seizure'?" Yuma loudly asked, ending the tranquil sound of the forest around them. "That isn't exactly _normal_, you know."

Despite their group of five walking for over an hour, no one had seemed keen on bringing up the monster that nearly crushed them. Apparently the bat faunus figured that now was the time to talk, as they hadn't encountered any more Grimm since Amber went wild and started flinging a storm around.

"Not even Leviathans grow to be that big. I've never seen anything like it before. That monster was definitely large enough to be a civilization killer." Trifa kept her gaze on the woods around them, machine gun at the ready. "Not to mention Blake is either dead or worse, she _left us for dead_."

Amber focused her eyes to Trifa this time and took in the girl's appearance like she had with Yuma. She was on the shorter side at perhaps 5'7", with light skin and silver-blue hair that just reached her cheeks. Her eyes had almost the same shade of silver-blue as her hair, with the right one being covered by said hair. She wore nearly the same outfit as Yuma, except her top was a sleeveless vest with the zipper opened three-quarters of the way. Dark gray lines ran along the skin of her arms and chest, extending past her sight because of the vest and elbow pads the girl wore. The tattoo artist who did her work was clearly an expert and knew how to make something truly unique. _'I wonder how much she had to pay for them.' _She thought.

Like Yuma she was carrying a very plain weapon, though instead of an assault rifle Trifa held a heavy-duty machine gun. Across her back was the exact same standard issue shotgun Yuma carried, although her pack was larger than Yumas and appeared stuffed to the gills. Unlike the bat faunus Trifa did have a melee weapon for up close and personal fighting; a lovely double-edged knife with a durable black grip secured to her lower back.

"Blake wouldn't do that. She...she's just catching up to m- us." Adam's retort didn't have the same gruffness as it usually did, his throat wheezing every time he breathed in.

An hour of walking without rest hadn't done Adam any favors, with each shallow breath just enough to keep him awake. His palm was sweaty, knees weak, and arm heavy. Plesskin's support, a literal shoulder to lean on, was surprisingly welcome. Wilt was sheathed inside Blush on his hip, a comforting and familiar presence like an old friend. The bull wouldn't be any help if a fight occurred, but he refused to let anyone else use his weapon.

_'I'm pretty sure that chick isn't coming back pal'_. Instead of commenting on this, which might cause further tension with Adam, she voiced another opinion that'd been on her mind. "I don't think that creature was a Grimm."

Yuma, Trifa, and Plesskin all looked back at her. Adam's unfocused gaze was on the ground, doing his best to deal with the watery feeling behind his eyes. He wasn't eager to make eye contact with the human, either. A moment went by before the trio of Faunus were back to keeping a lookout.

"White armor, red eyes, black skin. If it looks like a Grimm and growls like a Grimm." Yuma was no expert on Grimm, but he felt it was fairly obvious.

Amber nodded to herself, then remembered the others weren't looking her way. "Yeah, that's true. But I've never seen or heard bout Grimm that breathe, let alone have a seizure or panic attack. Grimm don't behave like that at all."

"Then what do you think it was?" A rustling to the left stopped Trifa in her tracks, machine gun swinging in the direction of a briar patch. The hair on the back of her neck tingled fiercely, her finger on the trigger of her weapon shaking. The brush stood six feet tall, stretching twenty or twenty-five meters down the path they currently traveled. Trifa was taking no chances that something could be hiding within waiting to strike. Several seconds ticked by with no other noise or movement, so she breathed in deeply and slowly eased her finger's tension off the trigger.

Amber _hmmed_ in thought, obviously not sure herself. "Since it was showin' signs of physical stress, and the Grimm attacked it the same as they did us, I think it may have been a kaiju."

"A kaiju?" Trifa turned around to look at Amber, brows dropping in disbelief. "But kaiju have always looked like giant animals in some form or fashion, with scales and feathers and things of that nature. There's never been a documented kaiju that looked like an armored humanoid."

"I'm telling you, it's a Grimm. Probably one that's been hiding away on the Dragon Continent for so long it became super-sized. Simple as that." Yuma chimed in, sure of himself like he was stating the sky was blue.

"Then why did the Grimm attack it? And why didn't it attack us?" Amber countered, pushing that particular point again. "The only things the Grimm attack are us and the occasional kaiju. They don't fight and attack each other, regardless of what some Mantle Sci-Fi Action Film would have you believe. It _had_ to be a kaiju, just a really big sum' bitch."

"A _sum' bitch_, huh?" Yuma couldn't help but smirk at the brunette, his throat rumbling when she started to blush. "Ya'll seen a _lotta dem_ monsters back home at the trailer park?"

Amber's jaw tightened, teeth grinding against each other. Her caramel eyes widened a fraction when Yuma started to full on chuckle. "Don't make fun of me! I can't help the way ah talk sometimes." Her face started to warm horribly the more her accent bled through.

"You know I've always been curious about something." Yuma had stopped in his tracks now, foolishly not paying attention to their surroundings. "If you had a car would you call it 'mah ryde'?"

"No! Ah only slip up when ah get mad. Like _right now_. I ain't no redneck hick, so stop making fun of me!" The brunette scowled at his insult, struggling not to point her weapon at him as anger took over.

"I gotta ask, do you have a horse and a cowboy hat at home?" Yuma kept on, not heeding her words or picking up on her irritation.

"No, but I got a can of whoop-ass with your name on it!" Amber stomped towards him ready to beat his ass into next week, and she would have had Plesskin not held out a hand in front of her.

"Enough!" Plesskin harshly commanded the duo, having ceased his own march to deal with the escalating situation.

XXXX

Snake Plesskin was not your average White Fang operative. He'd be the first to tell you that he wasn't a terrorist, but a soldier performing his duty to protect his nation and people. The only reason he even wore the mask was to blend in with the others, a sort of camouflage while amongst his fellow White Fang. He personally thought it was an aesthetically stupid choice and had discarded it without care when their group started traveling an hour ago. Why would you make yourself look like a monster if you were fighting for social reform and equal rights? Showing your face to the world made the statement that you were a living, breathing person and that your life mattered just the same as a humans.

He stood even with Adam at 6'4" and his build was quite similar to the redhead. His thick, brown mullet just touched the bottom of his neck. Emotional sky blue eyes contrasted with his serious demeanor. A light beard covered the lower half of his face ear-to-ear, although his facial hair was thankfully absent from his neck. The beard did nothing to hide the bright yellow and green scales running down his cheeks and neck that disappeared under his shirt. Unlike the black and gray outfits that Trifa and Yuma wore, Plesskin's outfit consisted of a sleeveless black top tucked into gray and white camo pants and black, knee-high armored boots. He also had a leather gun belt around his hips with an empty holster on each side. Like the others he was carrying a hefty travel pack on his back filled with supplies for survival.

Plesskin had stayed silent for most of the trip since the giant creature appeared. Helping Adam to stay on his feet required most of his focus so he'd hoped that Yuma, Trifa, and Amber would take the initiative of keeping the group safe. The three teens had actually done a decent job so far. Sure Trifa was too tense and kept swinging her machine gun around too much, Ambers ready stance with her staff was amateur at best, and Yuma appeared a little too lax considering he was the head of their formation. However, everyone had remained vigilant so far and that was most important.

At least until Yuma decided to start acting like an ass and putting them at risk by not keeping his comments to himself.

"Yuma, you don't like when people ask if you're blind or eat grasshoppers all day, so why do you keep making fun of her?" Plesskin's tone was blisteringly dry, conveying his wish for the senseless teasing to stop so the three could get back to work.

"That's not the same," Yuma stopped in his tracks, the corner of his mouth turning down at his third-in-command. "That's assholes being racist and believing stupid stereotypes. You can't compare that to me poking fun of the way she talks. It's apples and oranges."

"No, it's not strictly the same," Plesskin surprisingly agreed, which caused Yuma to smile. "But you're making fun of her for being different, and she's asked you to stop. Clearly it bothers her, just like others thinking you eat bugs bothers you. Not wanting people to make assumptions _is_ the same." And like that Yuma's smile died a painful death.

Amber nodded to him in gratitude, turning her eyes back to Yuma. "And I don't think just cause you have bat wings you'll act like an animal. I was raised better; to respect people for who they are and how they act, not what they look like or where they come from."

The conversation had brought the group to a halt, everyone looking at each other silently. Adam paid none of them any attention. He was so lightheaded he couldn't take his eyes off of a purple amaryllis struggling to grow underneath the shadow of the treetops. The stem was a pale green, unable to fully support the bulb, bent over at a forty-five-degree angle. The petals were horribly shriveled, wrinkled, and dehydrated to the point they were curled inward. The normally erect stigma lay flat along the petals, practically dead. His analysis ended when Yuma broke the silence.

"I… uh… I'm sorry for making fun of your accent." Yuma rubbed the back of his head, ashamed of his teasing words. "It was rude and uncalled for. You didn't deserve that."

Amber frowned at him just a moment longer, her eyes hard as granite, before breathing in deep and nodding in acceptance. "Thank you. My accent has always been something I try my best to hide. People hear it and automatically think I'm either an uneducated, racist bitch or that I fuck my cousin. After a while, it really starts to get to me."

"People really called you a cousin-fucker?" Trifa couldn't help but feel a wave of empathy for the other girl.

"Yeah… " Amber looked away, grabbing her arm tightly. Everyone wisely dropped the subject, wanting to soothe over the previous sour mood.

"Now that that's settled, let's start setting up camp." Plesskin gently sat Adam on a large rock, handing his leader a canteen of water that was still half-full. He pointed to Yuma, causing the boy's back to straighten in response. "Get a fire pit dug and grab the big pot so we can make a stew, then go gather some firewood"

"On it!" Yuma accepted the order without issue, setting his weapons and pack down next to a tree stump. He pulled out a small entrenching shovel that had been issued to him back in Menagerie to start digging.

Plesskin turned to Trifa next. "I want you to do a quick check on the surrounding area for any stray Grimm or people. Fifty yards should be fine. If you find any edible herbs or berries on your way back grab 'em so I can add them to our dinner."

"You got it." Trifa was all business, sitting her pack and machine gun down a few feet away from where Yuma's gear lay. She opted to take her shotgun instead, along with her ever-trusty knife.

"Amber, give her some backup," Plesskin politely requested-slash-ordered. "Can't be too careful this far out from civilization. Safety in numbers and all that that entails."

She snapped a salute to him. "I'll watch her back." Tossing her own small pack next to Trifas, Amber ran to catch up with the other girl.

"And as for you," Plesskin said as he kneeled down to check on Adam, forcing the canteen up to the younger man's lips. "Drink."

"I… I'm not thirsty." Adam tensed and tried to pull away, but weakened as he was, it was a useless gesture.

"You lost a lot of blood back there. If you don't stay hydrated you _will_ die." Plesskin tilted the canteen just enough for the water to pass Adam's lips. "_Drink_."

XXXX

Adam offered no more resistance and relished the cold liquid passing down his throat. The cooling sensation traveled down his chest, settling in his stomach heavily. He downed three more mouthfuls before putting the canteen down. His stomach felt bloated from the sudden intake, but he had to admit the water made him feel a little better.

Yuma hummed some unknown tune as he finished digging out a three foot fire pit. He reached into his pack and pulled out three long pieces of metal. Two of them were four feet long and U-shaped at one end, while the other was a plain bar two-and-a-half feet long. Yuma stabbed the four foot long bars into the pit, U ends pointed in the air. He placed the shorter bar atop the others, then grabbed the pot out of Trifa's bag, hooking it on the horizontal bar. The pot was two foot deep and two foot wide, meaning they would have plenty of stew once the fire got going.

Gathering firewood didn't take any time at all. Grabbing a handful of foot-long branches and smaller sticks, Yuma worked to get the fire started. He crushed a palm-sized Fire Dust crystal, sprinkling it in a circle around the wood. He wouldn't need to light it until the pot was filled with the ingredients for the stew. Plesskin was the one that usually cooked their meals, always trying to do something different so they didn't have to eat the same thing each time.

Standing up, he walked towards Adam and Plesskin, the snake faunus checking the tourniquet cinched around Adam's arm. "So, what's our next move?"

"We head south. Since Lake Matsu is where that thing went, heading east is no longer an option." Plesskin looked over the dressing covering the severed end of Adam's arm, grimacing at the red that had soaked through. The soiled bandage would needed changing before night's end. "We'll head to Shion to stock up on supplies, maybe stay for a couple of days to decompress."

"Yeah, we've been in the wilds for almost three weeks. Ammo is running low, and I'd like to have some soap again. Standing in a stream or pond can only do so much for my wings." To prove his point, Yuma stretched his left wing out. The fine hairs coating it shined with a week's worth of built-up oil.

"Sounds….good. And what about the human?" Adam drew in a deep breath, holding it in his lungs like precious cargo. He let it out slowly, counting to ten as he exhaled through his nose this time. His heart thundered in his chest, each contraction a jab against his sternum.

Yuma opened his mouth to give his opinion, but Plesskin cut off whatever he was going to say. "What about her?"

"Just because I'm grateful she helped us against that horde, it doesn't mean I want her hanging around for longer than needed. We haven't encountered any Grimm for over an hour, so she can leave once she and Trifa get back." Adam knew that his suggestions were to be taken as orders. He didn't need the human's help, didn't _want_ it. Agreeing to it initially was only because his vision had gone double for several minutes. Since then, he'd come to his senses. His warped, stupid senses.

Plesskin said nothing for a moment, his narrowed eyes boring into Adam's mask. His gut clenched involuntarily as the words spun in his mind. He roughly ran his right hand through his mullet, nails tearing into his scalp. Then he stopped, nodding to his boss.

Spit went flying when Plesskin struck Adam's face with his open palm. His hand burned from the slap, but he couldn't care less. Yuma stood there with open mouth, eyes widening further and further. He took a step back, fingers tensing as he waited for the coming slaughter. Any second now Adam was going to kill the older faunus in a bloody and spectacular fashion.

"How dare-" Adam's tirade was cut off before it could begin.

"Just because we haven't seen any Grimm for an hour, you think it's suddenly going to be smooth sailing? Are you fucking stupid!?" Plesskin could not believe the pure idiocy that Adam was showing considering their current circumstances.

"Obviously we're safe here. We don't need that damn human helping us. We've made it this far on our own. Or do you think I should bow down to a human like our ancestors did!?" Adam chewed the inside of his mouth just hard enough to cause a bit of pain in an effort to keep another wave of nausea in check.

The camp echoed with another harsh slap, no Aura to stop Plesskin's hand from striking Adam's face. "I think you should pull your head out of your ass and _listen_ to what I'm trying to say." Plesskin shook his hand to mitigate the stinging sensation in his palm. "We. Are. In. Grimm. Territory. You are severely injured, in case you somehow forgot. Someone has to watch over you, and the three of us just aren't enough. For however long we're out here we can't risk sending her away."

"I'll kill you when this is over," Adam swore as his teeth broke through his cheek, his mouth now awash with blood with a thin line trailing down his chin.

"You're going to kill me because I'm trying to keep us all alive? It's no wonder Blake left your sorry ass." At this point he was through arguing with this idiot.

"You don't-!" Adam shouted as he shot up to his feet, instantly wishing he hadn't. His blood pressure dropped so fast his head felt like he'd just been dunked underwater. Plesskin pulled him close before he could fall, the rough material of his coat groaning. He gently helped him to sit back down, then glowered at him.

"If you're so desperate to be away from a human that fought away an entire horde when she got serious, just because she's a human, then we will happily leave you in this forest, _alone_. It will take at least a week to arrive at Shion, so long as we don't come across any large groups of Grimm or a kaiju." Something about the man's tone told the two listening to him that he was not joking. "I will not gamble with my life, nor the lives of my comrades, because you can't learn to set aside your prejudices for the betterment of others. I'm getting our group back to civilization one way or another, even if I have to go through you to do it."

Adam said nothing to rebuke the older faunus. Instead, he tipped the borrowed canteen, which somehow hadn't been knocked over, to his lips. The water was swirled around, then spat onto the ground between him and Plesskin. The water was now a light red, blood and saliva mixing with the cool liquid. It was partially to clean out his mouth and partially an act of defiance against Plesskin.

"You'd go that far for us?" Yuma's whisper broke the silence smothering the camp. "Seems kinda… I mean, you don't even know me. You don't know Trifa or that Amber chick. You don't owe us anything." The young faunus' wings twitched, betraying his discomfort.

Plesskin shook his head, eyes keeping Adam sitting down. "I don't have to know you to keep you alive. Taurus here is being looked at by High Leader Sienna for a serious command position. I was assigned to your group to gauge each of your skills and report back on Taurus' leadership. So far, you've more than proven you have no place leading any of our people. Once we get to Shion, we'll get stocked up, then get on the first cheap flight to Menagerie. If you have a problem with that Taurus, keep it to yourself."

The snake faunus reached into his large pack, pulling out a machine pistol. Unlike the standard weapons Yuma and Trifa carried, these were customized by someone who knew their way around guns. The machine pistol had a nearly foot-long sound suppressor screwed to the muzzle, which itself had a rifle scope secured to it. The weapon was equipped with a magazine twice the size of a regular one, extending three inches below the magazine well. A curved blade was attached to either side of the gun body that pointed forward like a sword guard. Plesskin was deathly serious about his threat to Adam, clearly having enough of the teen's shitty attitude.

Adam stared at the weapon for a moment, then looked to Yuma. The two seventeen-year-olds said nothing, and Yuma looked between him and Plesskin in fear. Adam finally broke the stare and looked at the dirt between his feet. He breathed in deep, opening his mouth to speak, yet no sound escaped. He bowed his head ever so slightly, giving up without having to say the poisonous words.

"Now that we have that settled..." Plesskin started to walk west, weapon at the ready. "I'm going to get our dinner. Don't cause any trouble while I'm gone."

Yuma stood awkwardly next to the fire pit. The pot was still empty, two cans of beef broth lay unopened next to it, forgotten during the dressing down that took place.

"So, uh, I guess I'll just get this going now." Yuma backed away towards the fire pit, afraid he was about to see Adam lose his shit.

But it didn't happen. Adam said nothing in response. He just kept his gaze to the ground. Flaming shadows danced across his face, an image that might've been cool if he wasn't currently brooding. The bull squeezed Wilt's handle 'til his hand was shaking, the pure _rage_ over the entire situation thundering in his chest.

This wasn't how things were supposed to go.

XXXX

"Another batch of mushrooms?" Amber tried to hide her disappointment, but she couldn't help but frown at the sight of more capped fungus.

"Unfortunately," Trifa groaned in agreement. "I don't dislike mushrooms, but when that's all you're eating each and every day, Plesskin offering you a cooked snake becomes fine dining." Grumbling alongside her temporary partner, Trifa stuffed five dark brown mushrooms into a pouch on her hip. Her shotgun was readied when she stood to cover the duo's left, while Amber had the right with her Dust-tipped staff. She enjoyed the moment of silence, listening for anything indicating something near. Her ears might not be as good as Blake's dual-auditory hearing, but she could still pick out distinct differences disturbing the area.

"So, hey." Trifa nearly pulled the trigger of her weapon when Amber's loud whisper startled her. "Oh, sorry."

Amber did look like she meant it, but still. "What is it? And why are you whispering like that?"

Trifa didn't expect Amber to stare at her confused. "Well, you looked like you were really concentrating, so I didn't want to make any loud noise, but I also needed to get your attention. So… anyway, I just wanted to know something."

"Um, ok? What do you want to know?" Trifa tried to bring her focus back to their surroundings.

Another cluster of mushrooms drew Amber's attention. She walked over to grab them and put them in her own pouch. "Who did your chest tattoos?" she called from over her shoulder.

Trifa's right hand left her weapon, desperate to cover the gray veins marring her chest. "You think that's funny!?" Her eyes narrowed, burning an imaginary hole in the brunette's back.

The human girl stood up and looked at her in alarmed confusion. "Whoa, hey now, I was just curious about them. No need to bite my head off." Amber was shocked by the sudden switch from the faunus. It seemed like such an innocent question, so why the hostility?

"'Just curious'?" Trifa had heard that excuse one-too-many times since she was a kid. Ignorant human's always said the worst-

"Yeah. I think they look pretty cool. When did you get them done?"

_'What?'_ Did the human really believe the veins traveling across her skin were tattoos?_ 'I've never had anyone say that before.' _Now that she thought about it. Trifa didn't think Amber was slow, so could it be that she truly didn't know? But she'd seen Plesskin's face and neck, and she hadn't said anything about them.

"These aren't tattoos." She quietly admitted to the human.

Amber's lips turned down in confusion, "They aren't? Are they scars?"

Completely baffled at this point, Trifa moved her hand from her chest to her hip, exposing the veins again in the process. "Have you ever seen a faunus with skin traits before? Like Plesskin and his scales?"

"I've never seen a faunus with traits like that. A little extra hair is the most the faunus couple in my town had." Amber looked at the veins again, before looking up at Trifa's frowning face. "But I still think they're cool!" She was quick to assure her patrol buddy.

"Cool?" None had ever said such a thing about them. "Do you know how many times I've had humans just _stare_ at my chest? If they were perving on me I'd at least be able to legally smack them." She moved closer to Amber, her weapon thankfully not aimed in the human's direction. "Instead, I either get people that look disgusted when they see these veins or people that look at me in pity, as if I should be _ashamed_ I have these marks!"

Amber held up her hands, trying to calm the other girl down. "I'm not like them. I swear. I'd love to have something like you do. A natural tattoo with a neat design! Looks dope."

Trifa blinked and looked at the human before her. There wasn't any indication she was lying or taking the piss out of her. Amber appeared sincere and rather calm with a shotgun barrel not two feet away. Slowly, a soothing warmth spread through Trifa's chest. A feeling of… something she couldn't identify. Happiness? Maybe relief? Trifa had worked herself up to the point she'd almost attacked the brunette.

"I, um, appreciate it. It's… I never get any compliments about them. Thank you, that means a lot." Trifa's face burned red, but she pushed on. "And I'm sorry. Yelling at you like that, when you were being nice to me... that wasn't right."

Amber nodded to her, happy that they were on the same page now. She held out a respectful hand to the other girl. "You're good. I'm defensive about my accent, so I totally get where you're coming from."

The warmth she felt continued to spread through her chest. A human treating her like anyone else, no matter what she looked like. A human that saw their differences, and appreciated her anyway. It was an experience that was strange and confusing for her seventeen-year-old mind. Instead of an open hand, she held hers out in the shape of a wolf. Her middle and ring fingers were touching her thumb, pointed forward while her index and pinkie fingers pointed to the sky.

Amber's brow raised at the strange gesture, pausing to consider if she was supposed to do the same. Trifa shook her hand encouragingly. Amber worked her fingers to match the wolf shape and brought her hand even with Trifa. The 'mouths' of their wolf heads met, and Trifa opened her fingers when they separated.

"Too sweet." Trifa smiled as she looked around one last time. "What do you say we get back to camp now?"

"Might as well. Kinda sucks we didn't find anything except mushrooms, but it's better than nothing." Amber happily returned her smile.

_-snap-_

Trifa's turned around so fast her back cracked. She aimed her shotgun at the dense foliage with a shaky grip. The stick or twig or whatever it was that snapped sounded close, within twenty or thirty feet possibly. She couldn't see any movement, animal or otherwise, but nonetheless moved forward. Neither Trifa nor Amber dared breathe for fear it might startle whatever was waiting for them.

Trifa's hands were shaking so bad now the fore-end of her shotgun was rattling. Amber appeared at the edge of her vision to the right, wind dust-end of her staff pointed forward and shaking just a bit. The duo stood motionless as they waited for the slightest signs of life. Were they not so focused on what was in front of them, they might have noticed how the forest had gone dead silent.

The bushes were pushed down with the barrel of Trifa's weapon. The duo expected to see a Grimm waiting to ambush them or perhaps a hungry predator thinking them an easy meal. Either of those options would have been a preferred outcome. Their eyes widened when instead the remains of a large egg lay in several pieces before them. The cream-colored shell would've been five feet tall were it still intact. Even worse the inner lining of each piece was still moist with amniotic fluid.

Next to the broken egg were a set of three-toed tracks heading right and curving around in the direction… behind… them. Trifa turned her head towards Amber, her scared blue orbs locking with stunned brown.

** 'grrrr'**

They slowly turned their bodies to see what was standing behind them. Trifa took a hurried step back from the reptilian creature, her shotgun teleporting up to point at its face. The creature stood at nearly five foot three on two muscular legs. Its body was covered in tough-looking scales that were in two distinct colors of midnight purple and lemon yellow. The royal color ran down the back of the creature's head and neck, then continued over its back, the back of its arms, the outer portion of its thighs, and the top of its tail. Yellow covered the throat and abdomen, the inner arms and three-clawed hands, the inner thighs and legs from the knee down, and the underside of its thick tail.

A single line of bony nubs protruded out of the back of its skull and ran all the way down its spine, ending at the tip of the creatures tail which itself was covered in a pointy piece of bone. The beings head was triangular in shape with two yellow eyes staring them down, and a mouth full of sharp, carnivorous teeth. It leaned forward and began curiously sniffing at the girls, thankfully making no signs of aggression towards them yet.

Trifa pointed her shotgun squarely at its nose. In response the creature started sniffing the end of the barrel, even sticking its tongue out to taste the metal. The residual gunpowder left from days without cleaning the weapon must have tasted horrible for its lips pulled back in a displeased grimace. Trifa curled her finger around the trigger, about to blow the things head off were it not for Amber's hand on her shoulder.

"Wait. Don't shoot it yet." The brunette moved closed to the newborn kaiju with both hands held up.

"What are you doing!?" She hissed in shock.

"I'm testing something." Amber whispered back to her.

Amber inched her left hand forward to the kaiju's snout, moving slowly so as not to startle the baby. The growl that rumbled from its throat wasn't particularly aggressive, more of a light warning really. Amber ceased moving then and let it come to her. A few sniffs of her hand and a curious lick was all that happened. It didn't try to bite her hand off or go for her throat, so she decided to go for broke.

Trifa watched in morbid fascination as Amber gently rubbed the kaiju's scaly snout. It appeared to be the right thing to do as the newborn eagerly leaned into the contact. The spider faunus stood motionless, unsure what she should be doing at this point. That confusion faded when the kaiju started to mewl from the attention it was getting.

She reached forward and allowed the newborn to sniff at her hand too. Whatever scent she carried was approved of, and Trifa was rewarded with a nuzzling by the kaiju. This situation felt like some kind of fever dream. The best thing they could do right now was to leave the newborn and return to camp. No more crazy shit if she had her way.

"Who's a good Gorosaurus? You are! Yes you are! Gimme' a kiss-kiss." Amber was now full-on scratching the baby kaiju under its chin and talking to it like it was some kind of dog. She looked over towards her with a dopey smile, "We are so keeping him."

Of course Trifa didn't get her way.


	5. Slippery When Wet

**So things here in Vegas are just…this place is a complete shithole. If you ever think about moving here, slap yourself in the face and throw that idea right in the trash.**

**On a more positive note, I'm 15 months sober. Not a single drop of alcohol in all that time. It's hard to put into words how much better I am and how life is brighter now.**

**Chapter 5: Slippery When Wet**

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, April 30th, 8:45 pm_

The waning sun cast swirling shades of purple and orange upon the calm surface of Lake Matsu. Mixtures that went undisturbed despite the massive form of Monster X sleeping on the water. His body floated in place without a care to be had for his surroundings. Even the birds and fish went about their business around him unimpeded, seemingly not bothered by his gigantic presence whatsoever. Two female falcons were even fighting each other to see who would claim X's chest as their territory. Yet the alien kaiju still did not move.

The falcons took a much-needed break after twenty minutes of nonstop pecking and clawing. Both avian warriors panted in short bursts, eyeing the other with puffed chests and unblinking glares. The modern-day dinosaurs would settle this feud like their giant ancestors: two would enter the field of battle, but only one would stand victorious. Then the victor would find themselves a mate and rule the roost.

The predators hunkered down and prepared to leap towards each other once again, but a rumbling below startled them and sent both flying away in terror. Monster X opened his mouth and yawned deeply, mewling and stretching his forked tail within the water like a satisfied cat, unconsciously scratching an itch on his armored chest. The fish had all swam away in terror, unaware that X was not going to hurt them. Despite his monstrous appearance he looked to be at complete ease taking his short nap. He lazily smacked his dry lips to get the crusty bits off before his eyes briefly fluttered open.

The simple act of sleeping without those damn machines and their messages clawing into his head was so welcome he had no reason to fight his fatigue and muscle atrophy. This was a completely new experience for the alien kaiju and he was relishing every second of it. Just a chance to finish his nap then he'd take a look at his new home. Who knew what would be on this planet? Sure it had the hairless apes, but they weren't that impressive. When you've seen one bipedal, intelligent species in control of their home planet, you've seen them all.

The fading sky was exceptionally clear tonight allowing the stars to start awakening. The slight twinkling of each appearing light was a soothing visual to X. Any time that he found himself in that great void he was struck by the sheer grandeur of it all. Everywhere you looked one would see the endless expanse of space, occasionally broken up with glowing balls of plasma, planetoids, passing asteroids and comets, and so much more. His time in space was usually limited and almost always focused on destroying his masters' enemies. Yet even then, he took some solace in the sights of the universe.

Staring at the lightening atmosphere above, he wondered if his masters were out there right now looking for him so they could use him again... that line of thought was squashed immediately before it had a chance to truly upset him.

If the masters tried to enslave him again he would snap his own neck and deny them the pleasure of giving him commands ever again. For now, he would worry about himself and this planet. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply once more before his mind drifted into a deep REM cycle.

XXXX

_Unknown Location_

_? Year_

_ The loud droning and circling red light from the ceiling woke him from his uncomfortable sleep. The pressure glass wall to his left began to groan as the slab slid into the ceiling. Monster X robotically stood from the hard metal floor and walked out of his cell. Waiting for him were two large orbs tipped with three metal prongs coming to a point aimed in his direction. The immobilizers would restrain him with streams of gold energy and take him wherever the masters wanted._

_ This was not a new experience for the alien kaiju and he hated every second of it. _They _decided when he slept, when he ate, when he was tested. H__e__ despised the only home ever known to him with every ounce of his being. Was he being sent out to destroy more of the tall structures and the terrified beings living in them? Would today be the day they cut into him and hurt his insides? He saw what they did to that poor beetle; cutting off it' arms to install drills. It's screeching cries of pain were what he imagined death would sound like._

_ The gold energy of the immobilizers didn't hurt when they tightened around his upper body, but he'd learned not to fight against them. Any sign of combativeness on his part would be rewarded with enough electricity to know him unconscious. The immobilizers softly hauled him from his cell and into the darkened room beyond. The former cargo hold now served as a prison for him and others like him._

_ The section he was kept in had some strange beings held captive. He looked to the left as he passed the very beetle he was just thinking of. The 55-meter tall brown and gray bug was squatting in the corner of the cell with its yellow eyes locked onto the only way out, refusing to show its vulnerable back. Upon seeing X the kaiju's arm drills span up, while the horn atop its scaled head glowed gold with charging energy. The beetle clicked its mandibles in a blatantly threatening manner._

_ The cell to his right contained a bright red bat with a 65-meter wingspan. In contrast, its teeth and claws were a bone white. It slowly crawled along the ceiling squinting its eyes as X floated by. Without warning the bat opened its mouth and screamed towards him. A high-frequency sound wave shot out and slammed into the door of the cell. The barrier rattled ominously for several seconds, but it refused to falter under the sonic assault. The screaming attack continued on as the flying kaiju disappeared from X's sight._

_ Monster X stopped looking at his fellow prisoners to focus his gaze in front of him. The immobilizers were taking him to the gigantic teleportation chamber that separated the containment cells from the outside world. He had been confined to his cell for an unknown amount of time since they last let him out and therefore had no idea where the ship currently was. This was his reality. He never knew where he was relative to the universe. He never knew if it was day or night. Why did they do this to him? Why was he born into this hell?_

_ The doors to the teleporter opened with little noise and he was carried inside to be stood on the departure pads. The machinery hummed quietly as it came to life, the walls and ceiling blinding him with iridescent light. His body suddenly felt like he was being compressed by a great amount of pressure from all around him. The pressure squeezed and squeezed until it felt like his chest would collapse, then the force disappeared as his vision turned black. When his sight returned he was standing several hundred meters away from a sprawling metropolis currently experiencing a severe storm._

_ Oh, and there was a fleet of nearly one hundred triangular warships floating before him with thousands of weapons pointed at his face._

_ A__n__ eternity passed with only the sound of the storm filling the air. Then out of nowhere came the familiar buzzing noise and sharp pain in his skull from his masters' use of their devices. __**"Monster X! It's time to play! Slaughter them and leave nothing standing!"**_ _The mental command was somehow both a whisper and a deafening scream, and his body began to move all on its own a moment later. Lasers and missiles shot forth and struck his body with computer-assisted precision, however, the weaponry did nothing to stop his forward momentum and exploded harmlessly off his ebony skin and gray-white armor. His walking steps then turned into an unstoppable run, plowing through the continued barrage of munitions as he closed the distance between himself and the ships._

_ He kicked off the ground hard with a small manipulation of gravity to assist him, leaping nearly one-hundred meters into the stormy sky. An aggressive roar rumbled from his throat as he crashed atop one of the ships, his added weight making it tilt downwards. X held tightly to the ship's bow, his claws tearing into the hardened metal as easily as vulnerable flesh. With a firm grip to keep him steady, he began channeling Keizer Energy to his eyes. The versatile power built and built and built... then everything faded into a yellow haze as it exploded outward in four incredibly powerful graviton beams._

XXXX

X's body had so far been completely still while he slept, with exception to his chest expanding with each deep breath. The simple-minded fish had even returned and from time to time poked their slimy noses at his back in curiosity. The sun had now disappeared beyond the horizon leaving the wondrous beauty of the starry night sky. Were it not for the fact that anyone looking at him would freak out thinking him to be a titanic-sized Grimm, the scene would make for quite the lovely postcard advertising the lake.

X's stillness was broken by the sudden twitch of his fingers. All ten digits began to uncontrollably curl towards his palm as if an electrical current were running through them. His once peaceful face was now too suffering from convulsions. Although the armor protecting his skull hid it well, if you looked close enough you could see his brow scrunch close. His eyes moved rapidly beneath his eyelids as his breathing started to speed up. The fish below him had once more scattered away from the perceived threat, although this time it was more warranted as Monster X suffered from his nightmare.

XXXX

_ The blue energy shield protected the bridge of the ship shimmered weakly from his fist striking it over and over. The protection finally failed after the tenth hit, leaving the ship's bridge open to destruction. The durable metal was no match for the punch of the 60-meter monster, caving with ease under the force of his right fist. Having lost the commands coming from the destroyed bridge that kept it afloat the gray ship plummeted towards the ground to join six other destroyed vessels._

_ When X pulled his fist out of the hole he'd made he was surprised to see a teal-colored humanoid trapped in a mass of metal debris somehow stuck to the back of his hand. It was easy to see the little being was on the verge of death, with both of its legs missing and continuously spurting pink blood. X focused __the__ control of his body and floated off the crashing ship, hovering nearly 100 meters above the surface of the burning city. The alien weapons continued to fire upon him, hitting any bit of flesh or armor they could, but he ignored all of this as he kept his eyes on the dying alien._

_**"Crush it."**__ The command from his masters whispered into his ear. His left hand started to rise on its own like his body always did when they used him. He didn't need to raise it very far as it were to make the alien a bloody smear. Could he…?_

_ X tried to fight off the suppressive influence in his mind for the first time in nearly a year. The sudden stop of his descending hand told him that his effort was successful. It gave him a moment to focus back on the little being that was moving less now, blood still pouring from its severed legs. It had bio-luminescent skin that may have once glowed with light. Instead, the alien's body was so dull it appeared an almost sickly gray. No matter what happened it was going to die. Monster X just didn't want to be the one to snuff it out._

_**"Crush. It."**__ The buzzing noise was beginning to drown out the sound of the battle going on around him. He could feel the mental control of his masters growing, seen in how he had to truly fight to keep his shaking arm from killing the alien. __**"Do as you are told and **_**crush that creature**_**."**_

_ "Please..."_ He thought to himself desperately. He wasn't sure if they could hear his thoughts with their machines, but it was worth a try. _"Stop."_

_**"So be it." **__Clearly they either didn't hear him or didn't care for his pleading. His brain suddenly felt like acid was being poured straight into each blood vessel, accompanied by the buzzing noise growing so loud he had to shut his watering eyes. The booming explosions and warping lasers could no longer be heard over the drone from the mind control. He felt the exact moment when the masters exerted complete control over his body. Every muscle in his body seized up and refused to move despite his struggle against them._

_**"WARRIOR..."**__ Their angry scream tore through his ear like a knife. __**"Kill."**_

_ This time he couldn't save the little alien from having its life snuffed out._

XXXX

X had long since gone from a few small twitches and spasms to full-on tossing and turning as thin arcs of keizer energy traveled across his body. Waves and geysers spread away from him violently with each movement. The nightmare he was experiencing failed to abate the longer it went on. It was the opposite, in fact, with each image and sound worse than the last.

The vaporized remains of the populace blew away in the wind. The once-great cities that touched the sky toppled like brittle trees. The lush and vibrant environment was reduced to a burnt and deceased hellscape. Even in this nightmare, he could smell the acrid fumes of death from the noxious clouds caressing his body as they choked his lungs.

Monster X growled in anguish from the agonizing night terror. His growl soon turned into a scream, eyes opening to let loose an uncontrolled burst of his graviton beams. The four golden lights shot into the night sky and dissipated after several hundred meters. X was hyperventilating and trying to control the shakes quivering throughout his body. He had to get out of the water _now_. Gravity was manipulated instinctually to fling him into the air like a bullet. The ground was rapidly becoming smaller and smaller as his ascent through the troposphere continued. An oblivious flock of geese met an unfortunate end when he plowed right through them, obliterating their tiny feathered bodies. Had he been in a better state of mind, he might have felt sorrow for killing them.

He had no plans of slowing down at the moment, with his heart racing and vision blurred from the massive panic attack still wracking his body. It took just over a minute for Monster X to travel the entirety of the troposphere and enter the stratosphere. The ultraviolet radiation absorbed by the ozone did nothing to warm his flesh, and he spent no time to ponder the ice forming on his armor as he continued upwards. Clouds parted and dissipated from the force his body was generating, but just like with the geese and ice he could pay his surroundings no mind. The sudden drop in temperature to -92°F signaled that X had just punched through to the mesosphere.

Feeling the biting cold finally snapped X out of his panicked state. The creature's breathing slowed itself back to a manageable rate, allowing him to breathe in deeply and hold it for several seconds before releasing it just as slow. He repeated this three more times before he felt sufficiently calmed from his nightmare-induced mania. He hadn't experienced an episode like that in…nearly a decade if he remembered right. The asteroid always kept him in a state where he never had dreams of any kind, good or bad. And the last time he'd dreamed about his developing days was just before they'd put him in that prison.

Now that he was free would this happen every time he slept? He didn't need to eat food or drink water. He was able to survive in a vacuum just as easily as an atmosphere. Extreme heat did not shut him down and severe cold had not once stopped him. He was strong. He was _powerful_. His masters turned him into the ultimate weapon. Yet his body still needed sleep. His mind still had to rest from time to time to sustain itself. The chance of him suffering a terrible nightmare of his past each time he slept… The idea of such a life was frightening to the kaiju.

Continuing to think about this now would do nothing but upset him further. It would be best to deal with this another time. With but a thought, he ascended towards the exosphere. He wanted to get a look at the planet and see how advanced these apes were. At his slower pace, it took around ten minutes to reach the exosphere. Now at an optimal altitude for observation, his eyes took in what he had to work with.

The planet below was no different than most planets he had visited before. The surface was covered mostly in water with five large landmasses cutting the liquid into sections. Amusingly one of the landmasses looked like a pisces while another looked like a roaring drake. Great cities shown with sparkling lights over most of the land, nearly all of which were surrounded by thick walls. The only place that appeared to not have any major settlements was the drake-shaped continent. The darkened land looked to only have smaller establishments of indeterminate use concentrated towards the center. Curiously, no discernible walls surrounded those facilities so far as he could tell.

It seemed the apes had spread themselves across the entire planet with populations concentrated in defensible areas here and there. Considering that most civilizations tended to attack him on sight or run in a blind panic, X wondered if he should investigate the empty landmass first? With fewer people around, his chances of being left alone to explore and claim some territory increased. Of course, he couldn't stay hidden from the apes forever, unless he decided to live on the broken moon orbiting the planet. Not to mention they'd already seen him when he escaped the Gorath Asteroid, so if he stayed on the ground there was a possibility the natives would harass him. It said a lot about his existence when he had no idea what to do now that he was free for the first time ever.

Although…the sight of dirt and debris starting to float off his body was a clear sign he needed to bathe. His temporary rest at the lake hadn't done much for the filth covering him. The ocean to the west of the continent he'd come from would suit his purpose just fine. Perhaps he would actually get a full night's rest after bathing and start his exploration at first light. His vision wasn't hampered in any way by the lack of sunlight, but his body still felt rather weak from its lack of use. It wouldn't due to risk being unable to defend himself if some native creature took offense to his presence.

With a plan now firmly in mind, Monster X flew back through the atmosphere at a leisurely pace towards the western seaboard of Mistral. All he needed was a bath and some more rest. Everything would be just fine come tomorrow.

XXXX

_Ishiro Beach, Twenty miles from the town of Honda, Western Coast of Mistral_

_78 AGW, April 30th, 10:00 pm_

One would normally expect to see the beach crawling with humans and faunus looking to enjoy themselves without a care in the world. Some would be floating in the cool water splashing each other. Sandcastles were built up by little kids who let their imagination run wild. Those that were looking to get their tan on lathered up in sunscreen and soaked up the UV rays. Despite the sun being gone and the beach instead lit up by the pale, broken moon, the shore should have been overrun with fire pits, beer drinking, and parked 4x4s playing music. That was not the case for Ishiro Beach this particular night.

In fact, only one person happened to be on the sandy shore at the moment. Well, not actually on the shore. She was actually in the parking area about one-hundred feet away from the sand. The human woman was standing next to her old Poxbody Rustang she'd had since high school, fiddling with her scroll and cursing to herself several times. She stood on the taller side at 6'3", with hair that ironically matched her family name. Her lavender bob framed a soft face and golden eyes which was normally smiling in excitement or rested in serious professionalism. Her clothing consisted of a short-sleeved white button-up and khaki cargo shorts with blue running shoes. She was Lisa Lavender: Expert(**rookie**) Reporter(**vlogger**) for Remnant Broadcasting Company(), currently scowling in disgust at her malfunctioning scroll.

"Come on you piece of shit, work with me for once!" Lisa yelled at the uncooperative screen. The camera started to flicker and fill with static for several seconds before it changed to a blue screen. A smiley face stared at her while _Error Code: 1138 _blinked over and over, with the sentence_ Please contact Macrohard Customer Service for further assistan__ce__ at 1-800-555-1234 _below_. _She smacked the side where the dust battery was stored in hopes it would straighten the device out.

Her scroll wasn't one of the brand-spanking-new high-definition models that came with a quality camera, but an old hand-me-down she'd purchased from a pawn shop nearly a year ago. The twenty-seven-year-old amateur journalist, unfortunately, couldn't afford decent equipment and had to make due. It was all just...

"I really need you to work with me right now. _Please_." Lisa smacked the battery cover one more time and was finally rewarded with a _ding!_ confirming the return of a working camera. "Yes! Ok, let's try this again."

Lisa checked her reflection in the side mirror of her car to make sure she was camera ready. Bangs were pulled to the side and held with a squirt of hair spray. A small amount of eye shadow and blush to give her very pale skin a little color. No lipstick because she liked the natural shade of her lips. And luckily no food stuck between her teeth. She was set.

Turning back to the water she carefully hit Record, aiming the scroll at the sand. "_Once upon a time, beaches just like this one would be crawling with hundreds of newborn turtles eager to go into the world. The incoming waves called out to them and nothing would stop the little ones from leaving their eggs to enter their new home._" As Lisa talked she quietly stepped onto the beach, sweeping her scroll to get a shot of how empty it was.

"_The Mistralian Heisenback Turtle, known locally as the Walter Turtle, once numbered in the tens of thousands. Two to eight times a year, females would find a spot to nest during the night, lay up to one hundred eggs, then return to the sea. The average time frame for these eggs to hatch is sixty days._"

Lisa aimed the camera down at a piece of driftwood lodged into the sand. "_After hatching the babies made the dangerous trek across the sand, hoping that hunting gulls would miss them. If luck was on their side, the babies would hit the water and swim out to find some food, starting their lives as part of the ocean ecosystem._"

Turning her back to the ocean, Lisa focused the scroll on an empty Nopa-Cola bottle left on the beach. Had she kept looking towards the water she would have seen Monster X silently floating down from the clouds. "_Unfortunately over the last thirty years, pollution, fishing nets, and idiots digging up eggs as 'trophies' have decimated the population of these wonderful creatures. Biologists have estimated that if something drastic isn't done to conserve the Heisenback, they could disappear forever within twen-ack!_" Her sentence was cut off when a parakeet-sized Meganulon collided with her face.

Lisa was so startled she flung her scroll away. She reached up to grab hold of the Meganulon that was clinging to her like a desperate child. Its little limbs had a solid grip on her face, tiny claws dug into her cheeks. As she didn't have any Aura, Lisa's skin had started to bleed. Despite the pain, Lisa finally managed to pull the bug off and toss it away. The dragonfly hit the sand on its back, all six legs kicking in panic.

"Damn you! I swear if my scroll is busted I'll find a way to turn you into a hat!" The vlogger pulled her hand away from her face and scowled in disgust at the small amount of smeared blood. Lisa's vlogs usually only needed around five, sometimes ten, minutes of her own face for footage. With her face scratched up, that wouldn't be happening tonight. She turned in the direction her scroll was tossed and froze upon seeing what was crouching in the ocean. "Oh my god…"

A _massive_ Grimm was currently splashing water on its face and chest. It appeared to enjoy sloshing the visible filth off. "F-_fuck_ _me_. I…" Golden eyes desperately sought out her scroll. She had to get this on film! Where was it… There! It had become buried in the sand thirty feet away next to a crumpled fast-food bag. Within seconds she was picking up the device and shaking it free of sand.

"Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay," Lisa chanted as she picked up her scroll. The scroll showed that it was still recording from before, but to her dismay, it was messing up again. It hadn't fully cut back to the blue technical support screen, instead, the picture was blurry and intermittently fading in and out. Regardless she pointed the camera at the bathing Grimm.

"I have no idea where this Grimm came from, but just look at the _size_ of it! I can't say for certain how big it is 'cause it's crouching in the water." The Grimm's hands poured water into its face and seemed to really be enjoying the feeling. "Its hands look bigger than a Sea Feilong's head, and the arms look to be twice as thick."

Lisa's hands shook like a misfiring motor as she filmed. This didn't help to keep the picture quality up, but considering how close she was to the colossal creature, who could blame her? "I've never seen a Grimm bathe before folks. That's… it… I don't know why the Grimm is washing itself, but I suppose that as long as it isn't attacking a population center it can do whatever it wants really. I can't say for sure how big it is since it's crouched, but this has to be some kind of record-breaker. For a second there, I thought I might be looking at a kaiju, but it's even bigger than any of those and looking at that black skin and the bone armor… This thing is definitely Grimm, no mistaking it!"

The giant Grimm paid her no mind as it leaned back and sat down in the water. The strange beast took a deep breath as it lounged, clearly in a state of semi-bliss. As Lisa continued to film her mind started to wander as she thought of what this footage would gain her. A huge Grimm taking a bath might seem like a ridiculous notion, because _hello_, it kinda was. Yet with actual physical proof of the odd behavior, no one would be able to say she was making it up.

Perhaps she could sell the footage to a major news outlet, with the provision that they hire her as a 'bonus'. Remnant News Network and Remnant Broadcasting Company were the top dogs when it came to news and journalism. Spanning the entire planet meant they both covered just about everything, including Grimm-related stories. There was also the smaller network Schnee TV produced by the Schnee Dust Company. They paid _exceptionally well _when it came to their employees and freelancers, but the type of news that came from them was… _B__iased_ was too nice a word for that propaganda machine. Especially when they gleefully reported on anything Queen Salem-

The blurry image on her scroll suddenly cut to static, bypassing the support screen completely. Lisa frantically shook the device in an unsuccessful effort to restore the recording. This time, when she smacked the battery covering it actually made the problem worse, the screen finally fading away and shutting off to nothing. Her bubbling anger skyrocketed at that point. If she didn't get this stupid scroll working she wasn't going to have any more decent footage of the Grimm!

"**Raaahhhhh!**"

The loud roar startled Lisa so badly she lost her grip on the scroll. As it fell into the sand she looked up to see what was happening, and her heart nearly stopped at the sight before her. A Leviathan stood some distance away dripping with water, its open mouth exposing sharp teeth and clawed fingers curling in anticipation.

Lisa frantically grabbed her scroll and was dismayed to see it had yet to fix itself. She harshly smacked it several times, desperate for the screen to come back so she could record what was going down. The Leviathan let out another harsh roar, perhaps in a challenge to the larger Grimm. The relaxing Grimm had yet to move from its laidback position, completely uncaring about the aggressive behavior aimed in its direction.

"**Rawooooo. Arraahh,**" it responded to the Leviathan with low, guttural growls. Other than turning to look at the Leviathan, it didn't seem in a hurry to do anything. Lisa wasn't sure if that was because it didn't feel threatened or if it was confused by the actions of the other monster. After seeing it taking a bath she couldn't discount _any_ behavior from the creature at this point.

"**Roooowwwwarrrrr!**" Whatever was said did little to placate the Leviathan, who roared once more in a clearly challenging manner. A second later a yellow beam of energy erupted from the Grimm's mouth striking the sitting Grimm in the face! Lisa brought her scroll back up and thanked the Gods it was back to recording a blurry, doubled image.

The beam continued for nearly fifteen seconds before cutting off. The Leviathan roared in what may have been triumph or glee, before promptly going quiet when it saw that the other monster hadn't so much as flinched. It once again fired the destructive beam at the larger Grimm's face, achieving the same non-result as the first. Then, to Lisa's shock, the unknown Grimm stood up and started to walk towards its attacker, tanking the yellow energy like it was nothing! The Leviathan started to step back as the other _much_ larger Grimm closed the distance between them, apparently realizing the beam was doing nothing.

Lisa's eardrum rang when the larger Grimm slammed its hands on the jaws of the Leviathan, clamping its mouth shut with resounding force. The Leviathan pulled back hard in an effort to free itself, but the larger Grimm didn't budge an inch. Now that it was standing up Lisa's heart nearly stopped at just how _big _the strange Grimm was. The Leviathan barely came to the middle of its thighs, the aquatic Grimm dwarfed by its massive opponent.

"I can't say for sure folks, but…I'd estimate that this new Grimm is one-ten, maybe even one-hundred twenty meters tall! Never before has any creature, Grimm or Kaiju, lived on the planet that reached such a size. If… If this Grimm attacks a major city there'll be nothing to stop it." Lisa tried not to choke up as her mind thought up images of Vale, Atlas, Mistral, and other cities being reduced to flattened rubble by this behemoth. The Leviathan grabbed onto the hands holding its mouth and dug razor-sharp claws into the similar white armor. Instead of tearing into the armor, the Leviathan's claws broke when pressure was applied. The larger Grimm appeared quite unamused by the Leviathan's struggles and dealt with it accordingly.

_ Snap!_

Lisa stared wide-eyed at the now motionless Leviathan. The bigger monster had twisted its arms and with no visible effort spun the Leviathan's head upside-down, obliterating its spine and killing it instantly. The victor lazily pushed the fading corpse of its enemy into the ocean. Although it hadn't been injured, and clearly was not bothered by the yellow beam, the large Grimm brought its hands up to its face and rubbed its eyes tiredly. Lisa added that to the growing list of strange behavior from it. Grimm didn't need to sleep after all, and they had never been recorded suffering from exhaustion either.

The giant turned around and walked back towards the shore, the ground rumbling with each heavy step. Without warning the massive beast dropped to its knees, the water reaching up to its thighs, then gently lay itself onto the sandy shore. Lisa fell on her ass in sheer terror when the Grimm laid down about thirty feet from her. Close as it was if it decided to attack she would have zero chance to escape. Seconds ticked by while she waited for her inevitable death, but the creature didn't make any aggressive movement in her direction. It just laid there resting its cheek on crossed arms staring at her with half-closed eyes. Though the eyes of the creepy skulls on its shoulders were still wide open, an image that sent a shiver up her spine.

"I'm, uh, I'm just gonna go now if you don't mind." Lisa finally made it to her feet and started to back away from the tired Grimm, slow and steady to avoid pissing it off. Her scroll had long since faded to the Blue Screen of Unhelpful Information, so getting any further footage would not be in the cards tonight. Right now, her number one priority was to return to her apartment so she could download all the viable footage from her scrolls memory bank. Imaging software would let her do a little cleaning up on the film, not enough to restore it to a perfect picture, unfortunately, but she had to make it presentable if she hoped to sell it.

The lounging Grimm responded to her words with a deep yawn. When the air was let out of its lungs and hit Lisa she stopped moving away. Not out of fear, but from the horrid smell. The odor of the creature's breath reminded Lisa of rancid meat left out in the heat. "Ack!" Lisa smacked her lips and tensed her jaw in an effort to not vomit. Her golden eyes glared death at the now sleeping Grimm. The monster didn't care one bit that she was on the verge of throwing up her late corn dog lunch/dinner meal.

"Can I catch just _one_ break?" Her fate testing question was answered when the Meganulon that previously smacked into her face decided to use her head as a perch. It even had the gall to dig its tiny claws into her scalp several times like a kneading cat! "You little buttmunch!"

XXXX

_Mistralian Wilds, Twenty Miles South of Lake Matsu_

_78 AGW, April 30th, 10:15 pm_

"So, uh, don't freak out or nothin', but we ran into a new friend while we were patrolling," Amber called out, gaining the attention of the three faunus tending to the camp. Her weak grin and racing heart betrayed just how nervous she felt. Trifa stood to her right rubbing the back of her neck and staring at the ground like it was the most interesting thing ever. And to Ambers left, with her arm gently wrapped around its neck, was the newborn Gorosaurus she'd taken custody of.

Yuma paused in drinking from his canteen, eyes widening as he stared at them.

Adam's lips turned down like he'd just bit into a lemon, his masked eyes narrowing as he stared at them.

Plesskin abandoned the pot of venison stew he was stirring, eyes disbelieving as he stared at them.

"Can we please keep him? His mama doesn't seem to be around and he's got nowhere to go." Amber wasn't intentionally whining to her fellows, but the idea of the infant kaiju being left to fend for himself didn't sit well with her.

"Amber, you _do_ realize what that thing is, right?" Plesskin demanded, snubbing the end of his cigarette and walking towards the human.

"It's a baby kaiju that's not even a day old," Amber took a step forward, shielding the baby with her body. "I know how dangerous they are. I know that _quite well_."

Adam forced himself to his feet and pulled Wilt from Blush with his remaining hand. "Then you should know that once it gets big enough it'll be stomping through a city like a pissed off toddler. If it runs loose how many faunus will die because of it? And then that damn _witch_ will come swooping in to save the day like she always does."

Amber's staff may as well have teleported with how fast it appeared in her hands, the crystals glowing and ready, "It's an infant! I don't believe in harming innocents that haven't done anything."

"And how long will it remain innocent? A month, two months, maybe a year? It'll be just like every other kaiju that's attacked our cities. They have to be put down before they can do any harm!" Adam punctuated his statement by pointing Wilt directly at Amber.

Trifa and Yuma were tightly gripping their shotgun and machine gun respectively, expecting Adam and Amber to start fighting right then and there. Having seen Adam fight at 100% they couldn't discount him because he'd lost an arm. Not to mention if Amber let loose against the bull like she'd done towards the Grimm it would not end well. The infant kaiju was also not happy with the plunging mood, backing away from the group and hunkering down. Plesskin was in the process of putting himself between them when Amber coldly responded to Adam's anger.

"That's what people say about your kind isn't it?" Amber didn't need to yell this time, knowing her whispered words would get the point across. "I remember some of the people back home would say the only good faunus is a dead faunus. They'd talk about how all faunus men are just violent thugs that commit crime for no reason and sell or smoke dope, and that faunus women are only good for popping out babies and living off government assistance. And ever since the White Fang came along that kind of stuff has only gotten worse.

"I wasn't sure who you were at first, but that mask you wear isn't exactly subtle. Might as well be walking around in a shirt that says 'I am a terrorist!'. Yet I didn't attack any of you, did I? I could've let those Grimm tear you all to pieces or struck you all down with my Semblance. Or maybe I could have tied you all up and found a way to take you into the authorities. Queen Salem has a huge ass bounty for anyone that's part of the White Fang because you're all 'lawless dissidents that threaten our peace'. There are a lot of things I could do to you and no one would question me. What's a couple of dead thugs and baby factories after all?

"And I did _none_ of that. I didn't judge you because I don't _know_ you. Just because I'm not faunus doesn't mean I'm some vile piece of garbage. I gave you a chance," Amber slowly lowered her staff, the crystals becoming inert as she stopped channeling aura into them. "So I'm asking that you give this creature a chance, in spite of what other kaiju have done to our world."

The only noise in the immediate area was the crackling of the fire keeping their dinner warm. Weapons were still held tightly in preparation for a potential fight. Adam was still in a semi-crouched stance with Wilt pointed towards Amber. If he swung fast enough he might be able to slice her throat open. In return, she might be able to block his sword and cut his head off with the wind crystal in her staff. Or they could kill each other, at which point nothing would be resolved.

The standoff finally ended when Adam lowered his sword and walked back towards the campfire. Instead of putting Wilt in its sheath, he stabbed it into the ground and sat next to it. He glared back to Amber when he spoke again, "If that thing looks at me funny even _one_ time, I'll make it wish it was never born."

"You are so dramatic," Amber attached her staff to her back and walked over to the still nervous Gorosaurus infant. She gently rubbed under his jaw and kissed his rough nose. "It's ok now. No one's going to hurt you. I'll bet you're pretty hungry, aren't ya?"

The infant nuzzled her back like a dog getting its ears scratched. Amber led him over to the pot of stew with Trifa following behind her and happily accepted a bowl from Yuma, who was giving her a weird look. "You're different, you know that?"

"In a good way or a bad one?" Amber asked, raising an eyebrow at the blunt statement. Her attention was forced back to the Gorosaurus when it stuck its mouth into her bowl to chew on a thick piece of meat

"I'm not sure yet, to be completely honest," Yuma admitted as he filled a bowl for Trifa and Adam, handing them out to mumbled gratitude in return. "You aren't shouting racist crap at us, which I like, but then you think that you're gonna… I don't know, domesticate a kaiju by being nice to it? It makes me question if you're touched in the head."

"I'm not crazy," Amber paused to consider something before she continued. "Although if I was I wouldn't really know it, would I? You'd have to tell me I was insane, and I'd tell you to shut it."

Trifa chuckled at the honest and smart-ass response, coughing into her hand in an effort to hide her amusement. "At least you'd be the good kind of crazy."

Amber smiled earnestly, shrugging her shoulders in acceptance before looking at the dino that had its colorful face in her bowl again. "I read a book once that talked about how we domesticated wolves over time and the end result was modern dogs. So, you know, maybe this little guy could be my friend if I love him like a puppy."

"And when he gets bigger?" Plesskin asked, lighting his cigarette once more as he wanted to finish it before he ate his own meal.

"I don't know, I haven't thought that far yet," Amber's answer caused Plesskin, Trifa, and Yuma to face fault. "We'll figure it out as we go along. Isn't that right Chomper?"

"Chomper?" Yuma asked, having picked himself up off the ground.

"Yeah! I think it suits him, don't you?" It was perhaps Amber's words that made the sight of the Gorosaurus chewing on her cape cute, instead of concerning as most would believe. The human girl tugged the material out of his mouth and spooned another bowl of soup for him. "No! No chewing on mommy's cape."

The group, minus Adam, had a laugh when the saurian kaiju went for Amber's hair next. Whether it was because he was hungry or curious, the sight was still adorable. He finally released her hair after a stern thump to his snout. The next few minutes passed in silence, with the singing of mockingbirds and calls of owls creating a soothing mixture. Plesskin finished his cigarette and filled a bowl of soup, taking a bite before looking between Amber and Trifa.

"Our plan, for now, is to make it to the city of Shion and from there catch a flight back to Menagerie," Plesskin explained, getting the two girls to focus on him. "The setbacks we've faced have killed this experiment. There's no point trying to go after any SDC or Avalon shipments now with Blake gone and Adam injured."

"And who was it that said you get to make the decisions for us?" Trifa asked crossly, even if she internally agreed with Plesskin's logic. She had a higher rank than him in their little hierarchy, so why wasn't she the one that got to take control?

"High Leader Sienna did when she assigned me to evaluate your team," Plesskin retorted with a glare. His declaration had Trifa shutting her mouth with an audible_click_."My position in the White Fang is what you'd call a 'feeler'. I make sure that newer recruits and those looking to earn a promotion are up to the task. Then I give Sienna my recommendation, be it good or bad. You and Yuma have proven you know how to work in a group and pull your weight. Blake abandoned us to go who knows where, so she can fuck off for all I care. If she comes back, she better have a_ really _good excuse. Adam got his arm taken due to stupidity and then said he was going to run Amber off when you both returned, so he's ruined any chance of being let out into the field again any time soon. Certainly not in command of anything."

With every insulting word, Adam's fist grew tighter and tighter, the material of his glove the only thing keeping his nails from piercing his palm. He was not stupid! The fucking _human_ had no business being involved with the White Fang! And Blake had not abandoned hi-them! This whole situation was just a temporary setback that he needed to steer back on course.

"Well, um, I can still hang with y'all right?" Amber blurted out, her accent bleeding through. "I know that I ain't a faunus, but ah just think we'd be safer together and all."

"That was part of my plan," Plesskin assured her. "Until we reach civilization, we're at risk of running into something that could overwhelm us. Your race doesn't mean shit to me right now. I owe you for saving our asses back there, and I always pay my debts."

"Oh, well I'm happy to be of some use to ya!" Amber's honest smile earned her small ones in return from Yuma and Trifa, and a smirk from Plesskin. Nothing of the sort from Adam, of course. "Once we get to Shion would it be ok if I stick with you guys after that? Instead of parting ways could we stay together?"

Plesskin was about to respond when Adam finally spoke up.

"You know, I can't help but wonder why you're so eager to keep close to us." Adam sat his untouched food down, still glaring at the burning fire. The glowing embers were like the fire in his chest that refused to die down, regardless of his physical state. "In fact, it's awful convenient that just when a group of faunus that are part of the White Fang gets attacked by a large horde of Grimm, you show up so you can 'save the day'."

"What does that mean?" Amber frowned at him. "Are you saying I made the Grimm attack you?"

"No. I know that nobody can control the Grimm. But it's a little funny that a lone human girl who claims to be a Huntress just happens to be out in the middle of nowhere, and she somehow stumbles upon a group of rebels that oppose the current regime." Adam shifted his glare to the tanned girl, anger and suspicion in his voice. "How do we know you aren't working for the witch? Sent here to infiltrate our ranks and call your master once you've found our base? Or maybe you'll cut our throats while we're sleeping."

His words were quickly getting Amber's temper rising again. "You're delusional, pal, and I mean that sincerely. If ah wanted you dead ah woulda' just let the Grimm have yer' sorry ass for dinner. Ah had no idea y'all were out here. Ah just happened to be travelin' through the area."

"Is that right? So what were you doing out here all alone, away from the rest of the world?" Adam was not placated by her words whatsoever. In his experience, humans could never be trusted.

Amber went from rising fury to dejected sorrow in a second, like someone had flipped a switch. She broke eye contact with Adam to stare at the ground, slowly rubbing the vambrace covering her left arm. Without warning she grabbed her staff and stood up, nearly whispering her reply, "I don't want to talk about it. I'll go keep watch."

The four faunus were left in uncomfortable silence. Even Chomper seemed distressed by his mama's sudden change in mood. Adam scoffed in disgust, reaffirmed in his belief that humans had bad intentions towards faunus. Plesskin once again glared at the boy but said nothing in favor of motioning towards Trifa and Yuma.

"We can't wait to do this later, so get over here and I'll unlock your aura," His offer/command was met with shock by the two teens. They remained sitting for several moments before standing up to walk over. Plesskin stood and put a hand on both their foreheads, channeling his aura into them to start the process. "_I'm not one for fancy little speeches when doing this. I've got the power, and now so do you. Don't fuck it up._"

And with a gasp, two souls were released.

**Major thanks and props to Jesse K and Master Chief Spartan-117 for the work and help with this chapter. And with the last chapter. And the story construction in general. And thanks to all for the love given. It means _so_ much.**


	6. Genesis

**Apparently I didn't make it clear that this is set in a **_**massive**_** AU setting. My bad. This story could be considered an alternate timeline to canon alongside the Godzilla elements. Several of you seemed a little confused on that, but reviewed in a respectful way. For that, I thank you. ****Yes, Salem plays a role in this story ****different**** from hiding in the shadows.**

**Chapter 6: Genesis**

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 8:35 AM_

The Beowolf lay on its belly watching the one across from it do the same. The Bright Circle had reappeared in the sky above, taking the place of the Night Circle that watched over them when the Big One soared into the darkness. Many others were joined with it basking in the early sun. _Warmth_ was a new sensation not known until the Bright Circle rose. The warmth was a_ feeling_.Feelingwas _Nice_. Nice was _good_.

Would the Big One return? Things...dark before Big One appeared. Felt _nice_ when it around. Nice was _good_. Mouth felt...dry. Dry was..._bad_. Could it end the bad? Perhaps, but how? Wet moving ground nearby. _Water_. Looked _nice_, nice was _feeling_. The Beowolf gently lapped up some of the water. _Oh_, so that made dry throat better. The Grimm would need to drink to make _thirst_ go away. It was nice to learn new things.

The sky above darkened as the Big One did indeed return. The Big One made many trees flat as it lay down like they were. Oddness filled the pounding chest of the Beowolf, same as the thirteen other Grimm as the Big One narrowed eyes at them. _Aggressive response. Hesitant...confused?_ Big One leaned forward and sniffed them. Why? Smells were...important? The Beowolf would remember for later.

Big One had not _hurt_ them. Instead, it put out a clawed finger and held it before the Grimm. Chest suddenly felt _cold_. Cold was _bad_ feeling. Bad feeling is..._fear_. But fear is unfounded as the Big One rubbed the claw gently against the Beowolf. _Warmth_ came back and the Beowolf was _happy_ to _feel_ warmth again. It liked this and committed to memory that affection brought a feeling of happiness, and happiness was preferred to the cold feeling of fear.

Yes. The Grimm committed several things to memory as Monster X looked over the tiny beings that were similar to it. So different now than when they had mindlessly attacked the large kaiju, attracted to his presence by the _turmoil_ of his mental anguish fighting Keizer Ghidorah. The Big One was _kind_ to them. The Grimm would _remember_ the kindness and seek it as much as they could. For now, the Beowolf had a goal of discovering new good feelings with the Big One and Those Like It.

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 11:26 AM_

The Beowolf ended its thirst once more, lowering its mouth to drink up some of the wonderful water. Others like it stood on the water's edge also enjoying the cool liquid. The Beowolf saw one of the Nevermore holding a fish by the end of its tail, beak clenching to keep the fish from flopping back into the water. Said Nevermore didn't move for several moments, staring into nothing as it held the fish, before abruptly raising its neck and swallowing the fish. The Nevermore blinked in surprise, chirping to itself softly and ruffling its feathers. Its version of a shrug for an avian body.

The Nevermore didn't appear to feel _bad_, so did that mean the Beowolf could swallow the finned creature as well? It swiped a claw through the water to grab hold of one of the fish, the slimy animal doing its best to escape the Beowolf's iron grip. It sank its teeth into the tender flesh and ripped away a mouthful of meat. New feelings and sensations came from its mouth and lit up its tongue in a _good_ way. This sensation..._taste_...was a new feeling. It was a warm feeling. And warm was good after all.

Its belly now felt full in a way similar to when drinking water, but _different_ enough for the Beowolf to know that eating the fish was needed. Eating ended _hunger_. Hunger was _bad_ feeling. The Beowolf would remember that hunger could be quelled when it ate something. What all could be eaten to stop hunger? It was warm/_excit__ing_ to learn more about food.

The other Grimm followed this example and filled their bellies with the tasty fish, each demonic figure left satisfied ending their thirst or hunger. Four Beowolves, two Ursa Majors, two King Taijitu, two Boarbatusks, two Lancers, and two Nevermore stood in or near the water just…_thinking_. They all turned to the forest around them and towards the Big One, and these Grimm sought to learn _more_ about the world.

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 3:48 PM_

The Beowolf watched as one of the Boarbatusks cornered a furry animal against a thick tree. Was the monstrous pig hungry again? They hadn't gone far from the Big One and had not encountered anything that caused _fear_. Unless the furry creature _hurt_ the Boarbatusk? The black and white creature was small like finned fish, so was the small creature food? It had no sharp claws or teeth to tear flesh, how would it attack them with no way to _harm_ them?

The furry animal stuck its tail straight up, stomping its little paws on the ground in an aggressive display. Hmmm, the little creature thought itself a fierce beast? The sight made the Beowolf's chest feel..._light_. Light was _feeling_. Feeling was _amusement_. Amusement was nice. Nice was good. Oh, what was the _harmless_ little creature doing now?

The black and white animal had aimed its rear at the confused pig. What was that supposed-

"Squeeeeee!" the Boarbatusk went running away as fast as it could. The creature had sprayed some kind of liquid into its face, a bad _odor_ obliterating the nose of the pig Grimm. The frantic boar ran past the Beowolf, assaulting its nose with the _horrid_ smell too.

The Beowolf turned back to the demon before it, _fear_ filling its chest like cold water as the little monster's eyes shined with red light. _Fear_ was bad, and bad smell must be avoided at all costs. The Beowolf backed away from the _harmful_ beast, eyes locked and doing its best to not turn its back. The Beowolf learned not to mess with the black and white creature that stuck its tail up. They were _scary_.

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 7:15 PM_

The warmth from the Bright Circle was fading away, replaced with the cold that joined the appearing Night Circle. The Beowolf shivered as the wind blew harshly, trees and shrubs creating a chorus of noise from their movement. Fur kept some warmth in, but not as much as the Grimm would like. How could it make cold less bad? Were the others cold like it? Looking over at the nearest Grimm, another Beowolf, it saw how it shivered from the cold too. How could they stop this?

The other Beowolf noticed it staring, tilting its own head as their eyes met. The beasts watched each other, unsure of what to do next. The Beowolf looked down at its paw, wondering if it could change the situation somehow. Its question was answered by the other Grimm walking over and snuggling against its body. This contact by the other brought warmth, not unlike when the Bright Circle shown in the sky. Similar, but different. Different wasn't bad.

A quick glance around showed that others were pairing up to fight off the cold with warm contact. Contact was nice. Nice was good. The Beowolf would remember that snuggling brought the good feeling of warmth when it was cold. Just another thing to add to the growing number of things it learned. Oh, how it would like to continue learning more. For now, it would enjoy the closeness being with the other brought.

The Beowolf looked at its companion, their blood-red eyes not blinking. It was nice to have this bond. Warmth was felt in its chest, becoming more familiar to the Grimm as a feeling of..._contentment_. Did the others feel this as well? It wondered what they were _thinking_. Hmmm, despite the cold winds piercing the air, the Beowolf was relaxed enough to close its eyes and let its awareness slowly fade away.

And for the first time in the history of Remnant, a Grimm experienced sleep and the wondrous realm of dreams.

_Lake Matsu, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 8:27 PM_

Having spent nearly the entire day laying down and watching over them, Monster X still wasn't completely sure what to make of the small creatures wandering about the area and just doing _stuff_. When he'd woken from his strained sleep on the beach and returned to this body of water, he'd been surprised to see the beasts act so calm near him. He remembered how a large number of them had attacked him while under the mental assault of the Ghidorah, more than the fourteen currently resting near the water's edge. He'd nearly decided to destroy them upon returning to his...nest, considering they were the same type of creatures as that beam-spewing thing he had killed the night before.

Except, when he was near them he could sense smaller portions of Kaizer Energy within them. The very same energy source that he drew power from now resided inside their beastly forms too. That in and of itself was not a new experience for Monster X; his masters had pitted him against failed Kaizer experiments before, but the way the energy felt in these creatures was oddly calm. The best way that X could describe the sensation he was feeling was that the little monsters felt like smaller versions of himself. Not near as advanced, of course, but if they had enough time to adapt would that change?

So he'd settled for affectionately rubbing one of their faces and observing their behavior. Having done nothing but kill and destroy for as long as he could remember, choosing a more peaceful solution was a little satisfying. No, scratch that. He felt so very out of place. Killing and destroying came so easy to him. When it's all you've done for two-hundred and fifty years, it becomes as instinctual as breathing or blinking.

Still, destroying the little ones wouldn't do anything for him. They could not harm him, so why waste his time and energy smashing them? He hadn't even been inclined to kill the aquatic beast the night before, it just made the poor decision to repeatedly attack his face with an energy beam. Clearly, the creature would not have left him alone unless dealt with. So X fell back on the only thing he knew; killing.

X had been free from his prison for only one day and he still felt like his body needed significant rest. Spending this recovery watching the little ones was interesting so far. Eating and drinking, checking out the forest, plucking out the grass, etc. The creatures were cautious, but didn't let that stop their exploration.

The entire situation was just so strange to the Xilien weapon. Although many times his masters had amped-up their mind-altering machines to the point he would blackout and not remember what he'd done, never before had Monster X encountered another creature like himself. X had been to hundreds of planets and environments in his existence, and after so much time amongst the stars, he'd come to accept the depressing reality of being the only one of his kind. Until, that is, awakening on this planet.

It brought so many questions to his mind. Were these creatures, the little ones and the larger one, experiments his masters had created? The large thing he killed last night stood near 55-meters, a height Monster X himself had once been. The major difference, however, was that creature fading into nothing when he'd killed it. Nowhere in the universe had X seen a phenomenon like that before. If he killed the little ones would they disappear too? Possibly, but they weren't attacking him so he was content to leave them be.

Sudden movement below caught his eyes, dragging him out of his mental contemplation. One of the insectoid creatures had rolled onto its back while it slept, and X was treated to the sight of its six legs kicking into the air. The Lancer's head was twitching side to side, the rest of its body slightly shaking. Was the creature having some kind of night terror? None of the other creatures were acting in such a way, each of them slumbering peacefully.

X carefully reached out with his left hand and placed his armored finger in the mass of legs. The Lancer latched onto his digit and nuzzled its chitinous cheeks against him happily. Soothed from the warm contact given, the Lancer took a deep breath and went back to quietly snoring. X's lips pulled back over his teeth by themselves from the sight, happy that the little one was no longer suffering from whatever filled its mind. His smile faded, however, as his previous thoughts on the armored creatures returned.

Raising his hand away and back to resting on his stomach, X pondered on the various lifeforms he'd seen since awakening. The aquatic animals the little ones feasted on were found throughout the universe on many planets, as were the feathered birds hiding within the treetops. The bipedal, hairless apes were similar to the ones from the images planted in his mind during stasis, denizens of the planet he was supposed to attack. Yet, once more, he was confused by the black and white creatures that superficially resembled himself. How? Why?

The kaiju had to bust out of his prison, which was buried within a mountain, indicating he'd been trapped for a _long_ time. Was this the planet his masters wanted to destroy? If so, they obviously failed, seeing as how the hairless apes were not extinct. So where did the little ones come from? His masters never showed images of any creatures like them alongside the apes. So was he on a different planet? And if he was...is this where he was born? It was a possibility considering the presence of the little ones.

With the little ones sleeping X decided it was time to explore more of the planet. Sitting up and manipulating the gravity around him, X floated into the air to figure out which way he wanted to go. Last time he'd gone to the western shoreline, traveling mostly above forests and mountains sparsely intertwined with fortified highways. He turned to the north, where the landmass covered in tundra was located and contemplated whether he wanted to head that way. The cold wouldn't impede him at all, and he knew that something lived there after viewing the planet from the mesosphere. Would he perhaps encounter more of the little ones there too? X wouldn't mind that possibility at all, and it would give him a chance to see if he could implant keizer energy into their bodies by choice and not by accident.

With the kaiju's mind made up, he willed his body forward leisurely towards the snowy landmass.

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 9:02 PM_

The waves below Monster X were calm and quiet as he flew 100 meters in the sky. With the sun gone the temperature had dropped to near freezing, but in return, the wind was now nonexistent. In the thirty-five minutes the kaiju had been moving, he hadn't encountered any vessels in the water or the air. A pod of breaching whales about four miles back was the only thing X crossed paths with so far, which he stopped to watch for a few enjoyable minutes. Such beautiful creatures having fun with no fear of him even though he was practically on top of them.

**"Gruuuuuooo!"**

A pained roar to his left brought him out of his thoughts. Turning his head to look where the sound originated, X could see four ebony, serpentine creatures with wings and armored bellies dive-bombing another serpentine creature on the ocean's surface. The creature in the water was covered in scales shaded a greenish-brown, while its underbelly looked to be a pale yellow. Its long body was 150-meters in length and 20-meters in diameter, with two sets of dexterous limbs that ended in three-toed hands and feet. Three pairs of yellow horns, extended out of the creature's draconic head, while a set of whisker-like tendrils were attached at the end of its snout, just above the nostrils. Yellow, razor-sharp teeth filled its snarling mouth. A single row of sharp, yellow spikes ran down the back of the creature's neck and body, ending just before the 'tail'. The tail itself was a beautiful fin that looked like a giant piece of seaweed, although as it was currently thrashing about it lacked that serene appearance.

**"Graaooooohhh! Rooooohhh!"** The green-colored dragon cried out in pain when one of the serpentine creatures bit into one of its back legs. It retaliated by turning and biting the spot where the monster's left wing met its body, sharp fangs digging deep into the ebony flesh. With a rough jerk of its head, the green dragon tore the appendage off. The other creature cried out in pain, letting go of the dragon's leg and falling into the ocean, its remaining wing unable to keep it airborne.

The dragon didn't waste this opportunity, grabbing hold of the armored creature and clamping powerful jaws onto the back of its neck. It looked as if the dragon was going to tear through and kill the creature, but the other three ebony serpents stopped their fellow from death by sinking their own teeth into the dragon. The three bullies pulled the dragon out of the water and stretched its body, their intent to pull the creature apart abundantly clear. The dragon cried out once more in pain, tensing its muscles in an attempt to bite or claw the nearest serpent.

By this point, X had seen enough. With a minor thought, he floated towards the fight, silent as the void. The ebony serpent with the missing wing was the first to notice his approach. Its blood-red eyes widened as X grabbed hold of the wing and yanked the creature out of the water. The Xilien kaiju grabbed the armor plating protecting the serpent's face, his hand nearly eclipsing the Grimm's skull. Crushing the monster's head was trivial, its corpse tossed aside before it had even started fading away. His assault gained the attention of the other monsters, one of whom let go of the dragon and fired a yellow beam from its mouth.

Just like the night before when X fought the other giant creature, this attack did nothing to him when it impacted his chest. He clapped his hands into the monsters head, crushing its skull with no resistance. With its brain destroyed the armored creature plummeted to the water to join the first. This distraction gave the green dragon the opening it needed, managing to angle its head enough to sink its teeth into the neck of one of the monsters. Sharp claws dug into the unprotected back, keeping the bucking monster from throwing the dragon away. With teeth and forelimbs secured, the dragon curled its body and lashed out with a powerful kick to the face of the other monster with its back legs. The strike was enough to get the creature to remove its jaws from the dragon's body, and sent several teeth flying away in the process.

With two of the three serpents no longer holding onto the dragon, its weight brought it down to the water with a large splash. The serpent held in its grip jerked and pulled, but it was unable to get away from the dragon, only causing more waves from its movement. The dragon increased the pressure exerted by its jaws further and further, causing the serpent to screech in pain until…

_Crunch!_

The serpent's head fell into the water as the dragon bit through the creature's neck. Shoving the fading corpse away in disgust the dragon turned to the remaining serpent. It seemed to finally realize that it was not going to win the fight and turned to make its escape. The dragon, however, had other ideas for the beast. With a surge of power from its corded muscles, the dragon lunged out of the water and clamped onto the serpent's tail. The sudden addition of nearly 50,000 tons dragged it down to the ocean kicking and screaming like a child that knew it was about to get a spanking from their parent.

The dragon didn't give the serpent a chance to fly away. In seconds it had sunk its claws into the serpent's neck, keeping it in place despite it bucking and thrashing in fear. Without warning the dragon's throat bulged, like it was about to throw up, but what happened was much more impressive. Water shot out of the dragon's mouth and struck the back of the serpent's head. It was like someone had taken a fire hose and given it steroids, the force of the water hitting like a blade and piercing the serpent's skull. The writhing creature ceased all movement and started to fade away before it was tossed aside like a cheap toy.

The dragon turned to look at X with narrowed eyes, body tense and ready to attack. Monster X slowly closed his fists in preparation to destroy the green dragon if need be. Neither made a move towards the other, the dragon floating in the water, and X hovering in the air. The standoff was finally broken by the dragon slightly tilting its head, taking a few quick sniffs of the air between them.

**"Hmmm. You look like one of them, but smell like one of us."** The dragon spoke to itself softly, its confusion evident by its scaled brow furrowing.

Monster X stared at the dragon for a few moments before responding, **"Is that right?"**

**"You...can speak?"** The dragon's smooth voice was shocked upon hearing X say something.

**"Of course I can speak. Why wouldn't I be able to?"** X couldn't help the irritation seeping into his gravelly voice, nearly rolling his blood-red eyes.

**"Very strange...what do they call you?"** the dragon twitched its tail unconsciously, betraying how utterly confused it was.

**"My masters called me Monster X." **He answered, crossing his legs and 'sitting' thirty meters above the water's surface.

**"**_**Masters**_**? Are you for real?"** the dragon scoffed at his answer. **"That is not a name. That is a title. A designation."**

**"I...it is the only thing I have ever been called. Sometimes they would call me 'warrior', but that was only if the heat of battle became fevered,"** X muttered, not sure how to respond to what the dragon said. He waved a hand towards the dragon expectantly, **"What is your name?"**

**"My name is Shenlong, Guardian Deity of the Seabed,"** The now named Shenlong answered with pride. He twisted around to look at the mostly faded corpse of the last remaining armored serpent, then looked back to X. **"I could have destroyed those beasts myself. I have done so for many years. But...your assistance is not unappreciated. You have my thanks, Monster X."** The dragon tilted its head down in what would've been a bow if his body's physiology were different.

X felt a warmth enter his chest upon hearing the dragon's words. His years of servitude under his masters had conditioned him to expect other kaiju to attack him relentlessly, with little regard for whatever situation he was involved in. To encounter a kaiju that didn't want to tear out his throat was pretty refreshing and a welcome change to the usual affair of senseless violence. Even if he was sure he could snap Shenlong in half with ease, calmly talking to the dragon so far turned out to be the much better outcome. A surprising break from all the killing eased his battle-hardened mind.

He looked to the near-gone corpse as well, gesturing to it as he asked something he wanted to know for over a day, **"What are these creatures? I've been around several of the smaller ones and killed a larger one that came out of the ocean to attack me, but I have never seen anything like them before."**

Shenlong's whiskers twitched as he stared at the armored kaiju, **"So you aren't one of them?"**

** "No, I'm not. At least I don't think I am,"** X denied, though he was uncertain of his own words. Considering their passing resemblance to himself, the question of what they were weighed on his mind heavily. The major difference being that these beings seemed completely mindless, excluding that small group hanging around the lake he rested at. He needed answers of some kind. **"I don't know what planet this is and I have never seen anything that looks like me before. Can you tell me if any of them have ever talked to you before?"**

** "You don't know...where did you come from that you have not seen them before? And what do you mean, 'I don't know what planet this is'?"** Shenlong asked in disbelief, his scaled brow frowning.

**"I broke free of the asteroid that I was kept a prisoner in yesterday. It was buried inside of a mountain that I had to force my way out of, and the first thing I saw was the hairless apes that were digging into it."** X scratched his head and frowned as well. **"I have no idea how long I was trapped there. The last thing I remember was my prison heading for a planet my masters were planning to conquer, then I woke up when the containment system keeping me asleep finally failed."**

** "You came from the stars?"** Shenlong asked, glancing up to the sky unconsciously.

**"I've spent my entire life traveling through space under the control of my masters,"** X admitted quietly, shaking his head and trying to get the conversation back on track. **"What are these creatures? I've never seen a lifeform dissolve into nothing after death, nor have I seen anything that remotely resembles myself."**

Shenlong brought his paws together across his belly, looking once more at the spot the serpent once was, **"They are soulless monsters that relentlessly attack anything that isn't one of them. The humans, the animal people, kaiju, and even regular animals, if they see them they attack until either killing it or they are killed themselves."** He motioned to how nothing remained of the serpents. **"When they die they fade away and leave no trace they ever existed behind. The bigger ones, such as those serpents, are dangerous due to their size alone. But they, along with the giant walking ones, have learned to use powerful energy attacks that can do a lot of damage."**

** "I didn't find them to be a threat, and the smaller ones even less so." **X wasn't trying to sound like he was boasting. It was simply a fact.

**"Yes...I saw that. You are different from any kaiju I've ever encountered. I have never seen one of our kind become as large as you are either. Curious…"** Shenlong mused, eyeing X like he was a puzzle in the process of being assembled. **"Regardless, they aren't too troublesome if you keep your guard up. ****Every o****nce in a while, I have seen them overpower and kill a kaiju by outnumbering them, like what these ones tried. Considering how much larger you are and how their beam attack did nothing, you may not have to worry about them. There **_**is**_** something out there that-"**

** "Is everything ok father? You've been up here for a long time."** Another dragon poked their head above the water's surface, golden eyes widening when they saw Monster X.

The second dragon looked very similar to Shenlong, with a few differences that made telling them apart easy enough. For one, this dragon was a shade of teal green with a gray belly, instead of the greenish-brown of Shenlong. It was also smaller in size compared to Shenlong. It was only 80-meters long and 10-meters wide, with smaller horns that ended in round nubs instead of sharp points and shorter whiskers that ended just past its head. The same spikes ran down its spine, but just like its horns, they had yet to sharpen into a truly defensive weapon. A fin topped-off the dragon's tail as well, proportioned to match its size like every other part of its body. Even had the dragon not called Shenlong 'father', it was clear the smaller kaiju was the offspring of the older beast.

When Shenlong spoke, his words were quite stern, **"I am fine, Manda. Those serpents did not pose any real threat to me. Didn't I tell you to remain in the cavern until I returned?"**

The rhetorical question caused the smaller dragon, Manda, to coil in on himself nervously. **"Yes, but I was really worried about you. You don't normally take this long to fight off the monsters. I...I got scared, I thought maybe you were hurt."**

** "I understand son, and I know you constantly worry when I have to leave. You got that from your mother." **Shenlong nuzzled his rough cheek against his son's, both dragons making a pleased hissing noise. When he pulled back his stern frown had returned. **"Even so, I have told you that when I am fighting the monsters you are to stay hidden and not come out until I tell you it's safe. You are not strong enough to fight them yet, and if the humans or their demon were to get hold of you…"** The older dragon let the implications speak for themselves, knowing his son's imagination would fill in the blanks.

**"I'm sorry for disobeying you, father. It won't happen again."** Manda apologized quietly, knowing he'd made a mistake. Shenlong nuzzled his son once more, before waving a paw towards the water.

**"Your heart is in the right place, my son. But your concern will do you no good if you get killed. Go back to our home and wait for me. We will discuss your punishment when I return."** With the final word said, Shenlong turned back to X as Manda dived below the surface. **"He means well, but like all younglings, he is quick to ignore common sense when his emotions surge."**

** "Having someone care about you and whether you are safe is not a bad thing. I wouldn't go too hard on him,"** X, still hovering cross-legged above the water, giving his own opinion on the adolescent kaiju. The Xilien folded his hands in his lap as something Shenlong said nagged at him. **"You were about to tell me something before your son interrupted. You also said the humans have a demon of some kind?"**

** "There is a human female that rules over their species, but she is beyond anything of their kind that I have ever seen. Many of the humans have special abilities they train to fight the soulless beasts, and once upon a time they fought each other, but **_**she**_** is on a completely different level."** Shenlong rolled his body so that X could see part of his stomach laying in the water. The yellow scales were marred by an ugly scar. X's combat-trained mind analyzed how the epicenter looked like something pierced the dragon's flesh, damaging the scales in a 5-meter diameter, then trailed towards his front limbs in a jagged line that extended nearly 15-meters. It almost looked like a bolt of lightning had etched itself onto the dragon. **"She looks like a human, but I am not ashamed to say she is more akin to a demon wearing human skin. I had been fighting off one of the human's machines of war that intruded upon my territory, and after damaging it enough it retreated to one of their settlements."**

** "I foolishly decided to pursue the flying machine so that I could destroy it completely, and perhaps destroy whatever place they kept it so another could not be made so soon. I finished off the flying drill and even managed to destroy two of their walking machines that have drills for arms."** Shenlong paused to take fill his lungs with air. **"Their settlement had thrown up a barrier of some kind, but I wasn't interested in destroying their city. Taking out their machines was my only goal. After I had smashed all of their weapons, I headed back out to the sea to look over my family, but I didn't get maybe fifty meters before she appeared."**

** "What happened then?"** X gently asked, knowing that the situation was not going to end well.

Shenlong exhaled through his nostrils, a puff of steam dissipating in front of his face. **"She came in on a flying machine of some kind, moving like she was born on the wind. Before I knew what was happening she threw a fireball at my face. It stung a little, but I wasn't fazed by it. She flung several more at me, achieving the same result as the first. So I responded by trying to slam her out of the sky with my body."** Shenlong chuckled to himself as he remembered how foolish he'd been.

**"In my anger, I left myself completely open and the human made me pay for it. When she retaliated, I expected her to throw another fireball, but she instead struck me with some kind of red energy the likes I'd never seen before."** Without realizing it Shenlong had moved one of his paws over his scar. **"It **_**hurt. **_**I****t pierced right through my scales like I was a powerless hatchling. She missed my heart, **_**barely**_**, and was about to attack me again when my mate…"** His words trailed off quietly, the painful memory just as fresh the day it happened.

Shenlong's eyes hardened as he clamped down on his emotions. He nodded his head towards a very distant landmass west of them. **"Since then I have stayed far away from any land controlled by the humans or faunus as much as I can. I have had the misfortune to see fellow kaiju slaughtered by this human female, be they attacking a human settlement or keeping to themselves. Sometimes they put up a decent fight, maybe put her on the defensive. But the end result is always the same: her alive and one of our kind dead."**

** "I see…I will remain cautious of this being should I encounter her," **X responded, even if privately he did not believe one of these humans would pose a threat to him. His tongue was held out of respect for all the information Shenlong had given him, however, and the fact that Shenlong mentioned a mate that seemed to no longer be among the living. **"I have just one other question to ask you if you don't mind."**

** "I can spare a little more time,"** Shenlong answered.

**"You said these armored creatures are mindless, that they attack everything in sight without pause. Have you ever seen them...not do that?"** X knew his query was not worded well, but he wasn't sure how exactly to ask.

Shenlong's whiskers twitched at the question. **"If you are asking if I have observed them behaving like normal animals, the answer is no. They are not like us, humans, or regular wildlife."**

** "So you've never seen them investigating their surround****ing****s, ****then****? You've never seen them sleep?" **X pressed, hoping he didn't sound too strange.

**"No. They simply do not behave that way."** Shenlong gave the Xilien kaiju a _look_. **"Why do you ask?"**

** "I'm just curious about this planet. I want to learn everything I can about it." **X didn't particularly enjoy lying to the elderly dragon, but if the small group at the lake were behaving in a way that was not normal, the alien felt it best not to mention them right now. Besides, it was time for him to move on and continue his exploration of the planet. **"I appreciate you speaking with me. I have never had positive interactions with other kaiju before. I...enjoyed our talk."**

Shenlong did not respond for several moments, still eyeing X like he was a purple sky. Whatever he was looking for he let it slide, nodding towards the massive alien, **"I did as well. You are a strange being Monster X, but not unpleasant to be around. Once more you have my thanks for stepping in to assist with those serpents. Perhaps we will have a chance to talk again soon."**

Shenlong dove below the surface and headed towards his home, leaving X hovering in the air alone. He unfolded his legs and continued his journey towards the snowy northern landscape. With everything he'd learned, it was clear that the planet he found himself on was very different from any he had visited before.

Perhaps had Monster X been paying closer attention he may have noticed the lavish yacht adorned with a sigil of a snowflake wading in the ocean waters.

Standing on the deck at the stern of the luxury watercraft was a woman looking through a pair of high-tech binoculars. She looked to be in her late-30s, with pale skin and paper-white hair, held in a tight bun, and a hint of crow's feet at her hard blue eyes. Despite the cold, she wore a lightweight dark blue coat that was tightened around the waist with a sturdy belt, with a stylish white cravat covering her neck. Durable, but still somewhat fashionable, dark blue pants and white boots covered her lower half. Hanging on her belt was a gray, double-bladed weapon.

The weapon looked as if someone has fused a sabre and a dagger at their hilts. The sabre was three-and-a-half feet long, while the dagger was a foot. Both blades appeared razor-sharp and well taken care of. There was also a slight reddish glow from the hilt, hinting at the Fire Dust within. A fierce weapon for a fierce woman.

Lowering the binoculars, the woman frowned heavily at the sight she'd witnessed. Though the yacht was far enough away she hadn't been worried about being caught in the fight between the dragon and the Feilongs, her interest peaked when that other grimm showed up to assist the dragon. She'd never seen something like that before, and for the first time in nearly five years, she'd felt powerless. She couldn't tell how large the floating grimm was, but she knew it was the largest she'd ever seen. She remembered listening to her father tell wondrous stories when she was a child, of fantastical grimm and kaiju, the likes were not seen in modern times.

She wondered if his courage would have held in the face of such a beast.

She put the binoculars down on her deck chair and grabbed her scroll, but before she could access anything on it she was interrupted by soft footsteps behind her. She turned to see her butler, Klein, standing with his hands held at his back.

"Will you be heading to bed soon, Miss Schnee? It's rather cold out tonight," Klein asked politely.

"I'll only be out a few more minutes. When will we arrive in Atlas, Klein?" Willow pulled up her messages and saw she had one from Jacques. It was easily ignored for now. She and her children were returning from a vacation to Vale, and she didn't want to waste time speaking with him. There was one other message from her Executive Market Analyst, something about a rival company having an accident of some kind at a dig site. That message could be read tomorrow when she had time to go over any details more thoroughly. She pulled up the quarterly reports she'd been looking over before the spectacle of kaiju and grimm took place, eager to finish reading the data.

"We should make landfall by 9 o'clock so long as we don't encounter any obstacles. Are we heading straight to the manor or were there any errands you need to take care of?"

"Straight to the manor, Klein. Weiss and Whitley won't be skipping out on their morning training just because it's a little later than normal. After that, I'll be calling the board together for a meeting," Willow nodded to herself, pleased with the report that worker morale was up 13% in the last three months. Approving extra sick time turned out to be the right decision, it seemed. "I have some plans that I need to lay out and get started."

"Very well Miss Schnee," Klein responded quickly, nodding to her in concern. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to call for me."

_Shion, Western Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 1__st__, 10:35 p.m._

Lisa sat quietly, glumly, at her worn desk as she read through her emails concerning the footage of the fighting grimm. She'd done her best with her editing software to clean up the static and see if any of the doubled clips could be corrected. Alas, aside from lessening some of the blurriness by adjusting the contrast and exposure, none of the captured footage could be improved in any meaningful way.

Despite this, she'd hoped to get some positive feedback from the news outlets about her footage. The best response would be a job interview for a field reporter position, and if that was out of the cards she'd settle for starting out as someone's assistant. She had to start somewhere, after all! Instead, her inbox was filled with rejection after rejection.

_From Remnant Broadcasting Company: Unfortunately, the footage you've sent is too damaged for us to use on our programming at this time. Our producers wish to thank you._

_From Remnant News Network: Our news company is not in the business of airing doctored film to the public. Grimm fighting grimm is impossible…_

_From Vale News Network: The footage you sent looks like two guys in rubber suits from a bad Mistralian film. Please do not waste our time with this kind of material…_

_From Schnee TV: Schnee TV prides itself on accurate news stories and journalistic integrity. We are not interested in whatever fake news you're trying to pawn off…_

Email after email read much the same and had the same basic response: No one thought her footage was real and they didn't want to air it. Lisa couldn't fight the feeling of disappointment that surged through her chest. Another potential story that she hoped would get her noticed fell through. For three years now Lisa had pitched her vlogs to any news outlet she could. Her vlogs ranged from important coverage of political events, to information about local businesses, health and safety concerning food or medicine, and much more.

Sometimes her vlogs were more personal in nature, but most of them had to do with the goings-on in the world around her. In fact, her site, TheLavenderLogs, had started with a few videos of her angrily calling out the city council for their lack of response to a local company being caught spraying untested pesticides in the apartments of low-income faunus families. One of the families happened to be an old friend from school and his two sons, both of whom developed lung issues from the chemical used in their building.

When Lisa found out what had happened, she lost it. Her friend was getting nowhere with his landlord or the police, so she took it upon herself to make those first few vlogs. Within days she had people joining her website, curious about the videos after word-of-mouth from her friends helped make people aware they existed. Soon, what started as an angry rant over the injustice done towards her friend and others in his situation turned into amateur investigative journalism on the part of the then twenty-four-year-old.

Over three months of hounding council members, the police, the corporate thugs, and the apartment owner with a vlog update every few days finally got satisfactory action taken. The apartment owner decided that going to prison for allowing her tenants to be poisoned was not in her best interest and turned over evidence to the police that directly linked the company to the pesticide, with emails from them stating it was a new 'sealer' meant to keep moisture out of the buildings' wood. The CEO then agreed to a deal of no jail-time in exchange for paying all medical expenses for those that were affected by the chemical, on top of having to publicly announce what they'd done.

Seeing her hard work pay off, and seeing the tears of joy from her friend when he found out his boys would get the treatment they needed, told Lisa exactly what she wanted to do with her life: become a reporter. She wasn't strong like a huntsmen or huntress, she had no training that would qualify her for police or military work, but with her persistence and refusal to let bad people get away with bad things she was the catalyst for change taking place. You didn't have to have a gun or a sword - or a gunsword - in order to make the world a little better. Her words were her weapon.

Yet, even with all the good stories she had vlogged about, all the positive feedback from members of her site, one thing seemed to be in the way: her lack of education. Lisa had barely graduated from high school, being held back during her senior year. Then when it came time for higher education, she wasn't able to afford it. Her lacking grades made sure a scholarship was out of the question as well. To the major news outlets, it didn't matter that she had professionally covered several good topics despite being an amateur. It didn't matter that she'd been at it for three years now with no sign of slowing down. Her lack of a degree stopped any talks of employment. Gone were the days where someone could get on-the-job training and grow into their chosen career. It almost made you want to…

Lisa stopped herself from thinking more depressing thoughts. She took a deep breath and held it for thirty seconds, then let it out slowly. She repeated this several more times, focusing on her breathing in an effort to calm back down. The doctor at the urgent care clinic told her if she couldn't afford the medication needed to keep her bipolar disorder in check, she had to find constructive ways of managing her illness.

And how lucky was she that her vlogging site served a secondary, though just as important, purpose of doing just that. Doing her best to keep her breathing regular, Lisa couldn't stop the smile that appeared when she read over the most recent comments to her video of the giant grimm fighting.

**-RideTheLightning **1 hour ago

Whut? Is this for realsies? This is awesome Lisa!

**-QuickerPickerUpper** 57 minutes ago

I, too, have noticed the turtles aren't around as much as they used to be.

Also, HOLY SHIT! What kind of Grimm is that!?

**-FashionPolice** 50 minutes ago

Have any of the academies seen this? If not, I could show my professor tomorrow.

**-WhenDovesCry** 48 minutes ago

Uh...this is concerning. If that Grimm were to go near a populated area…

**-LarkSkywalker** 45 minutes ago

How is a huntsmen or huntress supposed to fight _that_? I'm seriously considering staying with my bodyguard gig after seeing that thing.

**-Rosebud4Life** 41 minutes ago

Don't worry! Once Queen Salem is told about it, she'll destroy it like she does all the monsters!

**-SniperWolf** 39 minutes ago

Rosebud4Life, Oh look, it's the fanatic again. Twas only a matter of time before you showed up. FACT: 'Queen' Salem might fight off kaiju and some of the larger Grimm, but she does NOTHING to help out the everyday people.

Racial tension? Nothing. Villages being swarmed by Grimm? Nothing. Hell, she lives on the edge of Vale and somehow Roman Torchwick has yet to be arrested.

**-Rosebud4Life** 38 minutes ago

SniperWolf, Queen Salem does the best she can! Killing kaiju that attack our cities is a lot of work and if she fights them that means the rest of us don't have to. If it wasn't for her a lot of people would be dead. She loves us and has always been here for us.

**-SniperWolf** 37 minutes ago

Rosebud4Life, This is the problem with you religious freaks. You refuse to admit there's anything wrong when Salem just sits in her palace, oh my mistake, Beacon Academy, with her feet kicked up doing nothing 95% of the time. I'm not ungrateful that she's killed a lot of kaiju, or that she helped unite the world to end the Great War when the kaiju first appeared, but she has become a lazy, self-gratifying TV personality at this point. Maybe if you grew up a little you'd see the truth.

**-Rosebud4Life** 35 minutes ago

SniperWolf, I'm growing just fine. I drink milk, thank you very much. Even if you can't accept Salem into your heart, she still loves you. I'll pray for you when I go to bed tonight.

**-FashionPolice** 33 minutes ago

SniperWolf, You've been warned before about attacking someone for their religious beliefs. At this rate Lisa is gonna ban you if you keep it up.

Rosebud4Life, Worshiping the Queen is fine, as is supporting the idea of her fighting off a dangerous kaiju, but please remember that if someone doesn't agree with your beliefs, that is their right.

**-Rosebud4Life** 31 minutes ago

FashionPolice, I'm sorry :(

**-FashionPolice** 30 minutes ago

Rosebud4Life, You're fine. Just remember to not be pushy on here.

**-Supernova****Kush** 28 minutes ago

Back on track people! -watches video- Lisa, honey, you _really_ need to upgrade your scroll. That being said, doesn't anyone else find it weird that a Grimm attacked another Grimm? And that the bigger one didn't kill Lisa? I know for a fact some of us, including yours truly, are huntsmen-in-training. Is no one else concerned about the behavior of that thing?

**-Quicksilver** 25 minutes ago

SupernovaKush, It's not normal at all. Grimm don't have the sentience needed to decide they need to wash themselves. And they've always be seen working together, not against each other. Note how the Leviathan was the instigator, and how the bigger one only killed it after being attacked. Then it doesn't kill the human within literal arms reach?

I don't like it. The whole thing stinks like a Schnee TV holiday special. I'll show my sisters and my dad, they might know something about it.

As always, love the vids Lisa. You're the best. 3

The vlogger sighed happily as she read over each message. Seeing people discussing her work, proving that she wasn't doing it all for nothing, never failed to fill her with warmth. She was telling a story and people were interested in what she was saying. And this was a story that _needed_ to be told. Grimm fighting grimm just didn't happen. And even if it did, this new monster could be a true city killer. People had the right to know, and if the press weren't interested in informing them, then it was her job to tell everyone willing to listen.

Glancing at the corner of her scroll she saw it was nearly 10:40. Her smile slowly disappeared as she stared at the time. She had to be at work in twenty minutes, and because she was the best worker her boss had, Lisa was expected to be ready to serve no later than 11:10. What a set of circumstances she found herself in where the only job she could find due to her lack of skills was the one that technically required the least amount of work. All she had to do was take her clothes off and dance…

Lisa put her face in her hands, taking another deep breath and holding it for nearly a minute. This wasn't going to be forever. She just had to keep working hard and she would eventually get her break. The young woman ran her hands through her hair, gently easing out any knots that had formed while she slept during the day. Logging into her site, she typed up a quick message to her followers.

**-CaptainLavender** just now

Hey ensigns! I'm about to head off to work, but I wanted to let you guys know that I sent the footage to multiple media sources. Sadly, no one seems interested in running a story about this grimm. So I have to ask a huge favor from you guys. Please share this with anyone you know. Spread the word about it as much as possible, and hopefully, the general public will be aware sooner, rather than later.

I'll try to make another vid in the morning when I get home, but can't promise anything.

Love you all, Lisa.

She didn't stay logged in to see if any further responses were made. Her place of work was just three blocks from her apartment, but she couldn't afford to be late. Her boss liked to passively threaten his girls about taking a cut of the money they earned as punishment for any screw-ups, real or perceived. Lisa had yet to see him actually do this, but she wasn't about to find out if he planned to make good on the threat.

Before she left, however, there was one last thing she needed to take care of. Getting up from her chair that was missing two of its wheels, she walked towards the kitchen, where a squar cage sat atop an unused end table. The cage had been thrown out by a neighbor whose pet rabbit had passed from old age. It was perfect for her new house guest.

The small meganulon within chipped excitedly when she approached, flying to the front of the cage and clinging to it. Lisa poked her finger through the cage and gently stroked the insect on its back. The cat-sized dragonfly clearly liked being pet, arching its back and making affectionate noises reminiscent of a cricket. She continued her actions for another minute before moving to grab a sealed container from under her sink. When she returned to the cage with her container, the meganulon tilted its head curiously.

"I've gotta go to work now, so you'll have to make this last." When she popped the lid to reveal several dead grasshoppers, her new pet nearly rattled the door of its cage it was so excited. "Yeah, you like grasshoppers don't cha? Nummy nummy little buggies for Meggie. Yeah."

"You have to be on your best behavior when I'm gone, ok? Can't have the landlord find out about you. A rabbit or a dog is one thing, but I don't think he'll appreciate having you here," Lisa talked to the insect, not knowing if it could understand what she said. Some experts debated quite fiercely about the intelligence of the various kaiju species that roamed the planet, with no firm stance from the scientific community on the matter. In the day since taking her home, Meggie had behaved well and not caused any trouble, so Lisa could only guess if the bug was listening to her or just doing whatever it wanted regardless of the silly human standing in front of it.

"I'll see you in the morning ok?" With one last gently stroke of her finger Lisa grabbed her purse, scroll, and a small handgun. She'd yet to be attacked while heading to and from work, but rowdy, horny drunks were not to be underestimated. After locking all three deadbolts on her apartment door she headed downstairs with her mind thinking back to the footage of the giant grimm, and wondering what the next few days would bring.

**A big shout-out goes to JessesanMan for their help with editing and being my muse. Such a great guy.**

**Also, the time it took for this chapter to be published is partially a result of some personal things happening. However, it's my goal to try not taking as long next time. I'm going for 8-10k a chapter, and between work and school I'm not left as much time to write as I'd like.**


	7. Baby Steps

**Lots of good things happening right now. Made it 20 months without a drink, my new medication is helping me feel better than I have in years, another three months and I should be moved to Washington state. Things are turning around from how they've been. Writing should be a little smoother from now on, and hopefully come out a bit faster.**

**As always, a big thanks to JessesanMan for editing and brainstorming with me. Major props, dude.**

**Chapter 7: Baby Steps**

_Wilderness, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 3rd, 9:45 AM_

Adam sat silently before the smoldering remains of the fire used to cook breakfast, carefully running a whetstone down Wilt's edge. His belly was content from the rabbit and bread served after the group had awoken, and with nothing else to do, he'd chosen to sharpen and clean his weapon.

The bull faunus scowled as he adjusted his shoulder and chin, pinching the pommel of his sword tighter to keep it from moving. The tip of the blade was pressing into the tough leather of his boot, carefully dug in and letting him adjust the angle of his blade as needed. He'd been at this for nearly twenty minutes, only partially focused on actually maintaining his weapon. One might think it foolish to work on your weapon while distracted like that, but this wasn't Adam's first rodeo. He knew how to handle his sword like any other experienced warrior, even if he was only a teenaged one.

What was keeping most of his attention was the other four members of their group, three of whom stood ramrod straight in front of Plesskin, arms glued to their sides. Plesskin himself was looking at each of them with an unimpressed brow raised.

"What the hell are you three doing?" The older man asked dryly.

"You said we would start our training today, so we're ready whenever you are sir!" Trifa exclaimed, or rather shouted, chin held high in respect.

"We'll do whatever y-you ask of us, n-no complaints sir!" Yuma couldn't help but stumble nervously, using his 'indoor voice' instead of shouting like Trifa.

"That's right! No complaints for at least fifteen minutes, sir!" Amber's brutal honesty actually managed to get Adam to snort, before he masked it as a cough.

"We're ready to learn!" The three teens said together, snapping off a sharp salute to Plesskin. Trifa and Yuma brought up their right hand, held tightly to their chests. Amber, however, saluted with her _left_ hand, doing her best to jut out her chin and puff her chest. Yuma and Trifa both looked at Amber, frowning at her mistake. She slowly turned to them, seeing that they had both used their other hand. She closed her eyes and grinned sheepishly, correcting her posture to match the other two.

Now that all three were on the same page, they faced Plesskin once more, "We're ready to learn!" they repeated with the same enthusiasm as before.

Idiots. All three of them were complete idiots, Adam decided. The _very_ awkward silence made the sound of him dragging the whetstone over his sword that much louder. The foursome ignored him for now, which was completely fine with Adam. He wanted nothing to do with them if they planned to act stupid.

Plesskin evidently agreed with him to some extent, bopping each of them on the head with his fist. They cried out in alarm, rubbing their heads to soothe the slight pain felt. Trifa looked ready to yell at Plesskin, but the man held up a finger, silencing any outbursts.

"One: don't call me 'sir'. I work for a living. Two: don't salute me. I don't care for it. And three: You have my permission to complain all day long if you want." Amber and Yuma smiled at the news. "But the only thing that'll earn you is more work."

Adam snorted at that, somewhat enjoying the way their smiles died, leaving quivering lips in their place. He ran a cloth down Wilt to wipe off the shavings and rubbed in some oil with a second cloth afterward.

Plesskin crossed his arms, "We'll be working on the basics first, get a feel for where everyone is so I know how to help each of you. Yuma, you're up first."

"Ok, what do you want me to do?" Yuma asked softly.

"Come at me and try to hit me at least three times. I'll be testing your offense and defense. No weapons for now, just hands and feet." Plesskin stepped about ten feet away from Yuma, motioning to the two girls to move in Adam's direction.

"So, uh, how do you want me to do this?" Yuma glanced from his hands to Plesskin and back again, still not quite sure what move to make.

"That's what she said," Amber giggled, trying and failing to quiet down when Trifa elbowed her in the ribs.

Plesskin sighed, waving his hand lazily. "Just attack me. Punches, kicks, elbows, whatever you want to use."

"O-okay then." Yuma brought his hands up in a boxer's stance, taking a moment to clench and unclench his fists. Then he attacked with possibly the worst right cross Adam had ever seen. It was blatantly telegraphed, pulled too far back before he'd sloppily swung, the blow going for Plesskin's ribs instead of his jaw.

Plesskin easily blocked the strike with the outside of his forearm, then blocked the left cross that followed. Yuma tried a hideous uppercut-jab thing, going for Plesskin's chin this time. The older faunus dodged instead of blocking, also dodging the follow-up kick aimed at his shins. Adam couldn't stop his head from shaking at that. Shin kicks? _Really_?

This pathetic display went on for another few minutes, Yuma failing to land a single blow on Plesskin, who hadn't said anything about the horrible showing so far. Adam scoffed at Yuma's complete lack of martial skill, going back to sharpening Wilt with more force than before.

"Now try to defend," Plesskin suddenly ordered, stopping Yuma's left jab in his hand and responding with one of his own.

The light punch made Yuma see stars, stumbling back in an attempt to put distance between them. When Plesskin reared back with his left hand, Yuma covered his face with both arms, eyes tightly shut in fear. Instead of being hit in the face, however, Plesskin's fist planted itself in Yuma's gut, making the teen double over and cry out in pain. A raising knee to his face snapped his body back up, stumbling and turning away from Plesskin. The snake faunus kicked the back of Yuma's knee, bringing him to a kneeling position.

"And then you die," Plesskin said as he put Yuma in a chokehold, putting his hand atop the teen's head and slightly twisting. Yuma's head only moved an inch, but the message was clear. Had this been a real scenario Yuma's neck would have been snapped in two like beef jerky.

"Pathetic," Adam grumbled to himself. He couldn't believe someone so clearly unskilled had been sent out into the field, or even accepted into the White Fang to begin with.

The human frowned at him, but he couldn't find it in him to care. Her opinion didn't matter.

The others ignored his comment, focusing on Plesskin after he helped Yuma to his feet. He patted Yuma on the shoulder, getting the humiliated boy to look up at him. "You've nothing to be ashamed of Yuma. If you've never been taught how to fight, then the only solution is to learn. We'll get you ready, you just have to keep your head up."

The words had their intended effect, getting the teen to smile a little and nod. He moved towards the girls so that one of them could have a turn, and was surprised when Amber clapped him on the back.

"Next time you'll knock his head right off, Ah know it," the brunette encouraged him, face turning red as her accent pushed through.

Yuma stared at her for a moment, a small smile on his lips. "Thanks. I-I'm not really used to all this. And, uh, I just w-wanted to say sorry again. I'm _really_ sorry about what I said to you before."

Amber's eyebrow rose slightly, "I accepted your apology then, you don't need to apologize for it twice."

Adam felt that Yuma shouldn't have apologized to the human once, let alone twice. The cloth he'd been using to wipe down his weapon was tossed into his cleaning kit, replaced by a fresh one that he put a couple drops of cleaner onto. Trifa moved forward to take her turn against Plesskin, actually doing a couple basic stretches to warm up her muscles. At least she seemed to know _something_ about proper fighting.

"I _do_ need to apologize, though," Yuma insisted, looking away for a moment while rubbing the back of his neck. "When I made fun of your accent… I was being an idiot. You helped us out and then stayed to help while Adam was out cold. When I heard your accent I went out of my way to tease you, and I should've shut up when you asked me to. That was a douche move."

Amber playfully punched him in the arm. "Well, now we're good. So let's move forward and not worry about it anymore."

Yuma nodded in agreement with the idea, making Adam shake his head in disgust. While Adam himself didn't find amusement from Amber's drawl, he hated the fact that a human continued to hang around them. Being outvoted by his fellow faunus in favor of letting Amber stay also burned at him fiercely. Such rebellion would have been crushed under his boot, had he not lost his right arm to the Grimm.

He stopped scraping his sword to watch how Trifa did. Plesskin waved his hand in that lazy way again, giving Trifa the go-ahead to start. She was aggressive right out the gate; crosses, jabs, gut punches, even a kick or two that nearly managed to hit his sides. Her fists were clenched, but not too much like Yumas had been. Her stance was also loose, her feet constantly shifting to keep her center of gravity stable.

Trifa tried two quick punches to Plesskin's chest, both deflected, and then she tried again to land a kick to his side. Instead of blocking, Plesskin wrapped his arm around her leg, countering with a tight strike to the inside of her thigh. She yelped when he shoved her back, losing her footing and falling on her ass. Plesskin gave her a moment to scramble to her feet, then he went on the attack.

Instead of trying to block Plesskin's punches, Trifa was trying to avoid then, weaving left, right, and down. She managed to avoid some of them, but most still struck her, each one forcing her a step back. In the end, Trifa was able to grab Plesskin's arm and attempted to punch him in the nose. The older faunus knocked the punch away, retaliating with a headbutt to Trifa's face. She went cross-eyed and was tossed to the ground with a twist of her arm. His hand glowed red, and a knife suddenly appeared in his grasp, blade pressed to Trifa's throat.

"I give, I give," she said quickly. "I'm done."

Plesskin pulled the knife away, which faded into a red light in his hand that disappeared a moment later. He helped Trifa up, rubbing the dirt off her back. Adam was… slightly impressed with Trifa's performance. She'd kept pressing the advantage until they'd switched positions. Even managed to nearly get a few hits in on Plesskin. Compared to the sickening disappointment that was Yuma's fight, Trifa looked like she'd had _some_ experience with rough fighting. She had no real technique to speak of, but the enthusiasm was a welcome trade.

Plesskin didn't completely agree. "Keeping on your opponent can work if you know how to take command of the fight. However, you were _too_ aggressive, just swinging any way you could, trying to land a hit." He held up her arms and moved them into a certain position, then adjusted her stance. "Be ready to strike at a moment's notice, but fight smart. Keep your form as much as you can."

Adam scoffed at Plesskin's advice to not go one hundred percent at all times. Why should you worry about getting _just_ the right attack? It wouldn't matter if your enemy could block if you cut their limbs off with sheer power. He looked at the stump of his arm hidden by his coat, an automatic reaction to the very thought he'd just had. The wound had finally stopped bleeding yesterday morning, and the remaining tissue stung any time it was touched. The healing process had a long way to go.

"You want to make sure that you keep your guard up, even when you attack. A strike made in anger could leave you open to your enemy if you don't keep control of yourself." He had her strike his palms a few times, giving advice on when to focus more on punches versus grabs. "Down the line, you can worry about what kind of weapon you want to build, and we'll be able to find a fighting style that goes with that weapon. But it never hurts to have something to keep control of the fight during close-quarters combat."

Adam… supposed that grappling to put an opponent on the ground, or even just remove a weapon from their hands, wasn't horrible advice to give an amateur. He always preferred fighting with Wilt at the ready, but if someone got close enough he couldn't swing her properly, he would have no issue smashing their elbow out of socket.

Trifa nodded, grateful for the lesson given freely. She moved back to the line, surprised to see Amber throwing up some weird hand-sign. Trifa hesitated a moment, before copying the gesture and bumping their fingers together. Adam frowned at the display, the small respect he had for Trifa dying a little, being choked with piano wire.

Why was everyone acting like this was normal? He looked to the edge of their camp, eyeing Chomper as it chewed on a raccoon breakfast. The beast had not lashed out, so far, but he refused to believe it wasn't going to tear their throats to shreds. Much like the humans that took advantage of the faunus, kaiju behaved in only one way; attack any- and everything around them, including each other. And whenever a city was attacked, those that couldn't afford the housing close to the center of the city, mainly faunus, were the ones that lost lives to a rampaging kaiju.

As Amber did a few light stretches, her attempt to copy Trifa painfully obvious, Adam turned his gaze away from the infant dinosaur. While he held some anger towards kaiju because of the destruction they caused, the fact that so many faunus suffered from these tragedies was due to their inability to afford the safer housing in the inner city. Kept down in the workplace, always shot down when affordable housing was being discussed, roughed up whenever they asked for equal treatment.

Kaiju weren't the problem in his opinion, merely a symptom of the greater sickness. An oppressive system meant to keep anyone born of a 'lesser race' from being treated as equals. The simple act of living life was made as difficult, and sometimes as miserable, as possible. These fools that he was currently stuck with hadn't experienced the pain of this world like he had. Adam knew what life was like, how it felt to be powerless, and he would never again allow himself to be put in that position.

Plesskin signaled for Amber to start, which she did by immediately trying to kick the man in the balls. It actually took the snake faunus by surprise, not enough for him to take the kick, but her choice to go below the belt was certainly not expected. Adam paused in his work, staring at how Amber tried to jam her thumbs into Plesskin's eyes next. When Plesskin blocked that as well, Amber decided to bite him, but she was kicked in the stomach and forced back.

Well, Adam couldn't say that Amber's technique wasn't to the point. The human went for the balls, then she tried to claw Plesskin's eyes out. Now she-what the hell was that dinosaur doing?

It was approaching the duo from behind, eyes locked on Plesskin's back. He knew it! That damn monster couldn't be trusted not to attack! Adam tried to stand, grabbing the hilt of his weapon to support his weight out of habit. Of course, in his lack of attention from watching the spars, he'd forgotten the very important fact that Wilt's tip was pressed into his boot.

"Agghh!" Adam's growl drew Plesskin's attention away from his trainee, giving her the chance to grab his top and push him back. The sudden extra weight had forced Plesskin back a step, where he tripped over Chomper's tail. Adam also fell back, neck bulging in pain as he hit the ground, Wilt smacking him in the groin on its way down.

Plesskin tried to sit up, only to have Amber shove her arm into his throat and press him into the dirt. "And that's why you always keep an eye on the fatal half-inch. You never know when the reptoids will strike." Amber grinned like a dweeb, then stood up and hugged the purple and yellow Gorosaurus. She turned her attention towards Adam, jaw dropping as she realized that he was in distress.

Plesskin slowly blinked, getting back to his feet to glance in Adam's direction. He was trying to remove Wilt from his foot, but he couldn't muster the fortitude to actually rip it from his flesh. Yuma and Trifa had run to their packs to get their first-aid kits, while Amber ran straight to Adam, hands grabbing her head.

"What the hell happened?" Amber asked him, moving to grab Wilt, then choosing to instead hold his leg down.

"You're damn dinosaur just tried to attack Plesskin!" He growled at her.

Amber frowned in irritation. "No, he didn't. He wandered over cause he saw us roughhousing. A cat or a dog would do the same, in case you've never had a pet."

"You really think it isn't looking at us and picturing a full-course meal?" His argument sounded a bit weak, but he wasn't going to back down from this human.

"Maybe, but I don't believe that. I just have a feeling about him," Amber lowered her voice slightly, trying once more to be nice to him.

He didn't want it.

"Whatever, just go away! I'll take care of it myself!" He screamed at her, reaching for Wilt's hilt to pull her from his boot.

"Stop it," Plesskin admonished him, grabbing his wrist. "Calm. Down. You're going to injure yourself further."

Adam yanked his hand away, scowling at Plesskin with pure hatred. He was sick of this other faunus bossing him around and making him look like a fool.

Yuma and Trifa stood to one side, two decently-sized first-aid kits in hand. Amber got out of the way, with the duo moving closer to start their treatment. Before they could begin, Plesskin threw his hand up, signaling them to stop. Adam was about to yell at him, but the older man turned to Amber with a curious look.

"Do you know how to administer first-aid? Yuma mentioned that you stood guard while he and Trifa patched up Adam's arm."

"Uh, no, not really," Amber admitted, her voice a little softer than normal. She didn't sound upset, so… maybe… bah! Adam didn't care what she was feeling.

"Ok, let's rectify that," Plesskin turned his gaze towards the others. "Alright, you two know what to do right?"

"Uh, no. I always just slap a bandage on till the bleeding stops," Trifa replied.

"I just remember reading online once that you always use a tourniquet for spurting blood," Yuma added his own experience. "I learned that from Mustard Clinic."

Plesskin was actually taken aback by their candid admission of not knowing how to patch someone up properly. "But… you both saved Adam's life. Did you just… wing it?"

"Pretty much," the duo answered. Plesskin stared at them for several moments, before putting his head in his palm. Adam would've done the same, were he not impaled with his own weapon.

"I swear… ok, so this will be a lesson for all of you." Plesskin kneeled down, beckoning the others to move close. "So, Adam's foot has been stabbed with a blade. What's our first step?"

Adam wanted to rip Wilt out of his foot, but with only one hand, tending to the wound would not be easy. He watched the other three look at his foot, then to Plesskin.

"We... need to pull the sword out, right?" Trifa's answer prompted a shake of Plesskin's head.

"First, someone needs to hold Wilt up. Try to keep it steady so that it won't cut up more of Adam's foot." Trifa did as Plesskin instructed, holding Wilt at a forty-five-degree angle.

"Now, normally you don't remove an impaled object, because it's potentially keeping any bleeding blocked off." Plesskin pointed to a small ring of blood around the spot where the sword had pierced his boot. "You can see how some blood is seeping from his foot anyway, but that's ok. Obviously, no arteries go through the foot, so Adam bleeding out isn't a concern. Do any of you know what our biggest concern is?"

"Adam losing mobility in his foot?" Amber asked, face scrunched in thought.

"No," Plesskin denied. "Depending on the severity of the injury, that is something to consider. But even then, infection setting in is what we should worry about the most."

"So we need to make sure it's as clean as we can get it, then put a bandage over whatever is bleeding?" Yuma asked, pulling out a gauze pack.

Plesskin nodded, a small twitch of his lips signaling his approval. "That's right. So, once Wilt is removed you'll want to rinse off the blood, apply the bandage, then wrap it nice and tight." Trifa needed no prompting to pull a roll of wrap from her kit, along with the canteen of water attached to her hip. She was careful not to jostle Wilt while grabbing the items, letting it sit on her thigh. "Now, getting to the wound requires us to remove Adam's boot. So, Amber, I want you to untie his laces. After that, I'll show you all what to do."

Amber did as instructed, untying the laces of his boot. Plesskin grabbed the canteen and unscrewed the cap, peering inside to see how much water was left. Trifa kept the wrap in her hands, unrolling two inches of it so she'd have a piece ready. Plesskin looked to all four of them, asking if they were ready. Everyone nodded, Adam reluctantly, and Yuma was visibly nervous.

"Ok. Trifa, on three you'll pull the sword out, then Amber will pull off Adam's boot and sock. I'll wash the blood off and then bandage the wound. Got it?" Plesskin explained quickly, getting another round of nods. "One… two… three."

Wilt was pulled from Adam's foot with a wet _pop_. He ground his teeth to keep from crying out like a wimp. Amber removed his boot and sock an instant later. Plesskin tipped Trifa's canteen over his foot, the clean water pouring over the cut. Adam let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, the cool liquid soothing the burning feeling caused by his wound. True, Wilt had only pierced half-an-inch into his foot, but the blade caused more damage from flopping around after he'd fallen back.

Once all the blood was gone, Plesskin held out his hand towards Yuma. The gauze pack was passed over, but he didn't immediately open it. Instead, he motioned to the two-inch cut atop his foot, "After you've cleaned the wound as best you can, you put the bandage over it, applying pressure if the bleeding is still going." He tore open the pack, carefully placing the gauze onto Adam's foot. "You want to make sure that you don't get anything on the gauze, or in the wound. In the field, you most likely won't have a sterile environment, but you still need to do your best to keep everything as clean as possible. If infection sets in, the chances of losing a limb or the person losing their life go up significantly."

Adam himself had seen a few cases like that happen. Someone taking a bullet to the arm or leg that unfortunately weren't treated correctly, and later suffering from septic shock. It never failed to bring morale down for a while. Plesskin signaled for Trifa to hand him the brown medical wrap, one of his hands reaching to take it. "Your next step is to take the wrap, or whatever clean dressing you have, and wrap it around the area. Start it on top of the bandage, then go around the area over and over, until the bandage is secured to the wound." He did as he explained, running the wrap around his foot five times. It was tight, but not enough to cause Adam discomfort.

"Ideally, you want to check the dressing every few hours. Sooner if you suspect the wound is bleeding through the bandage. If the bandage is soaked with blood, or if the dressing is at least 24 hours old, change it as soon as you can. And always try to keep everything as sterile as possible." Plesskin handed the medical wrap back to Trifa, looked over his work, then leaned back to rest on his heel. Trifa, Yuma, and Amber eyed the dressing for several moments, then looked up to Plesskin. "Any questions?"

Yuma slowly raised his hand. "What do we do about Adam having to walk?" A good question, Adam had to admit.

"Normally you'd want to have the person stay off their foot as much as possible. It helps to mitigate the pain, but it also helps to keep sweat down a little," Plesskin explained. "With us being out in the woods we don't have a choice. We have to keep moving towards Shion. This wasn't a severe injury, but it's still a good idea for us not to push it. Adding an extra day or two to the trip won't be a big deal."

The three stooges nodded in acceptance. Adam couldn't help but grind his teeth, however. The longer they stayed out here, the longer it was that Blake could be in life-threatening danger. Despite the fact that he knew it wasn't guaranteed she was heading to Shion as well, a false sense of hope was better than admitting that she might have run off somewhere else. What if she ran into something she couldn't fight or escape from? Did none of them care?!

"Well, since we need to keep the bandage clean, and his sock is bloody, I've got something for ya," Amber walked over to her pack and rummaged around for a moment. She found what she was looking for and returned to his side. "Here ya go!"

She held out a pair of socks for him to grab. He couldn't help but stare at them. They were a nice sky blue, which he didn't mind, but on the front were two halves of a fluffy white cat. Held together they made a complete image of a smiling cat hanging onto a rope with its front paws. The awkward silence couldn't have conveyed his disbelief any better if he'd tried.

"See, it's a cat that's hanging on the rope, doing it's best to hang in there," Amber explained with a smile. "You get it? Hang in there, it's hanging, eh, you know… " Her smile faded away, cheeks turning redder by the second.

Adam took the socks without a word, contemplating if he could choke the goddamn human to death with them.

_Turkana Mine, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 3rd, 11:05 AM_

Armored men and women, accompanied by multiple compliments of AK-130 robots, set about completing the Forward Operating Base they'd been building all morning. The heavy machinery, trailers, and vehicles Mr. Slate's Dust and Mineral Company had brought to the site were gone, forcibly ejected from the area by the Atlas military and a few huntsman teams the day before. After getting an aerial view of inside the mountain, the place where the giant Grimm was reported to have been sleeping, reinforcements were called in and Command was sending a few high ranking officials to investigate.

The FOB so far consisted of a compact command center, a couple of large tents that would serve as temporary barracks, a plain-looking building that was going to house anything that could be extracted from the… whatever was inside the mountain, and a 'chow hall' that was basically a converted semi-trailer. The whole scene was a bizarre mix of military professionalism and half-assed DIY craftsmanship.

A landing pad had been marked at the edge of the rocky clearing using spray paint and knee-high orange cones. It wasn't pretty, but it was all that the pilot of the descending Atlesian MK2 Manta needed. The large machine touched down softly, turbines spreading dust outwards. It took nearly a minute for the turbines to finally come to a halt, quieting down with a soft whine. The side door facing the FOB opened with a hiss, allowing the man and woman within to step off.

The skinny, mustached man looked to be in his late-30s to early-40s. His short black hair had a small bit of gray at the temples, contrasting well with his mocha skin and emerald eyes. He was dressed quite sharply, much like a distinguished gentleman. He wore blue-gray pants and an overcoat, with the coat lined in yellow. Underneath he wore a yellow button-up and black tie, covered by a black vest adorned with yellow buttons, and black, fingerless gloves protected his hands. He looked around the area with interest, focusing his eyes on the entrance to the mine that had been dug back open.

The white-haired woman next to him locked her icy blue eyes on the peak of the mountain, blown apart like someone had set off a powerful bomb. Her hair was pulled into a tight bun, with a large bang hanging over her right cheek. She wore a long-sleeved white coat that reached her ankles, held together at her waist with a blue buckle, with a white blouse and a blue coat beneath that. Covering her hands were a pair of black elbow-length gloves with gray cuffs. White pants, complemented with blue garters, were tucked into thigh-high gray boots.

Attached to her side was a single-edge sword, with a crescent-shaped guard protecting the hilt. The hilt itself had a trigger halfway down, used to release the guard. It was a simple, but effective, weapon for the Specialist to wield. Having looked at the mountaintop for several moments, she tore her gaze away to look towards her companion. Her 'partner' for this investigation, and technically her superior. Arthur Watts: Chief Engineer of the Remnant Defense Force, and second-in-command of the Department of Grimm Affairs.

"It appears the distress calls weren't exaggerating the damage caused," The woman observed softly. "Though, I suppose that we are lucky only fifteen people were killed and twenty injured."

Watts waved his hand dismissively. "We have more important things to worry about than miners Miss Schnee. If the reports we were given are true, something very strange lies within these rocks. I intend to find what it is."

Winter frowned at his callous words, but held her tongue from calling him out. That would only serve to get her in trouble with their superiors. As a Specialist in the Remnant Defense Force, and right-hand woman of General Ironwood, Winter Schnee had been a career military woman ever since she graduated from Atlas Academy. Instead of becoming a Huntress, she believed her skills were better spent working with the people whose main purpose was finding and destroying kaiju. Though, she never declined when asked to lead squads of soldiers and huntsmen on Grimm hunts. Kaiju may have been the bigger threat due to their size and individual destructive potential, but waves of Grimm were not to be underestimated.

Thus, she decided to remain professional, even if she felt he didn't deserve it. "The last update we were given by the ground unit said they'd cleared out the debris from the main tunnel. We shouldn't have any problems getting to the chamber the Grimm was sleeping in."

"Yes, and they also mentioned what look to be man-made structures making up the inside said chamber. Exciting, isn't it?" Watts asked, lips imitating what could be called a grin. Winter didn't dignify him with a response. "Come, let's see what awaits us within."

Winter frowned once more. "Protocol is for us to check in with the ranking Lieutenant in charge of the FOB."

"Progress waits for no man." He looked at her like she'd just stepped on his shoes. "You may go talk to them if you wish, but I am here to investigate whatever is inside."

He walked away without another word, hands in his pockets and whistling a jaunty little tune. Winter thought quickly on what action to take, before huffing to herself and following after him. The Specialist didn't trust Watts for a second, despite his position in the government. He'd never done anything illegal or worthy of dismissal from his office, but he made it no secret that he valued gaining knowledge over anything else. The blatant way he always ignored military protocols, and even the rules established by his own department, rubbed Winter the wrong way. Not because of the rule-breaking itself, though that irked her, but because men with such drive usually ended up doing reprehensible things in that pursuit of knowledge. She quickly sent a message to Lieutenant Rojas, letting her know that she and Watts had arrived, but were going to enter the mine before checking with her.

General Ironwood and Councilor Schnee had ordered this operation, however. Therefore, she would fulfill her duty as asked of her. Of course, Winter would still be keeping an eye on the man. It never hurt to be diligent.

She glanced at the main building that was to be their command center once it was finished. It was coming along nicely for such a hasty set-up. "Is there anything, in particular, you believe we'll find?"

"No. But whatever it is will surely be worthwhile," Watts responded. They entered the tunnel that led to the center of the mountain, men and women setting up lights in the ceiling to avoid any mishaps. The journey to reach where the monster was reportedly sleeping only took two minutes, neither saying anything as they walked. The large rocks had been cleared away, leaving only turtle-sized pieces that had been moved to the tunnel wall.

They stood at the large hole that led into the exposed chasm, taking in the view for all it was worth. The room was _large_, so large that they could easily see four or five Leviathans fitting inside, with space to spare. Sunlight from above revealed the walls of the chamber were indeed artificial. Instead of layers of rock, metal covered everything in sight. LED lights lined the chamber wall, a row going around the perimeter every fifty feet. Every thirty feet or so was a rectangular vent that looked to be five foot-by-three-foot, wisps of steam seeping through the grate. Interestingly, there were walkways and doors at certain places, the walkways connecting to others above and below themselves. The west side even looked like two massive doors were trying to separate and open to the outside. Impossible, of course, due to the surrounding mountain.

And in the center of the chamber: some kind of damaged four-pieced structure, with claw-like extensions running up their length, aimed towards the empty space between them. Four towers, positioned equally apart like the corners of a square, reached from the floor to what had been the ceiling. Three of them had fallen into the walls, or were shoved, while the remaining tower attempting to do… something. The three-armed pieces seemed to have some power running to them, with yellow light flashing from the point the arms met. What purpose they served, the duo could only guess.

"What- What the hell is all this?" Winter's jaw slowly dropped, gaping like a fish. Her eyes moved across everything they could, taking in the unnatural sight. "How long has this been here?"

"With the amount of rock we had to go through, I'd estimate that this has been here for several thousand years, minimum. Once we get some geologists here they can give a more accurate answer." Watts scratched at his chin in thought, eyeing the technology before them with a hungry look. "A Grimm hidden underground is not a new concept, but we've never found something like _this_ before. What is all this technology for? What is it doing here?"

Winter agreed with him, it _was_ an extremely odd scenario that didn't make any sense, but she was less concerned with the machinery and more concerned with the Grimm reported to have left the area. "We'll need the proper equipment to start our work, so I suggest we inform General Ironwood we've arrived, and afterward we can gather a survey team. But we need to locate the Grimm that was here as soon as possible. There's no telling where it is or how much damage it'll do."

"Yes yes, we'll speak with the good General," Watts sarcastically agreed. "But the moment we're done, we'll choose our team and get started. As for the Grimm, I have faith that the Atlas military will handle it. And if our P.E.N.N.Y. unit isn't able to kill it, then the Queen will do so."

Winter was sure that the Queen would, indeed, be able to destroy the creature that had escaped. But the longer it roamed the world unchecked, the greater the chance of civilian casualties.

_Turkana Mine, Northern Mistral, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 3rd, 11:49 AM_

"The wall is made of a highly durable steel-like material. The chamber was first penetrated when miners used a carbide drill bit, after having burned through a high-speed steel and a cobalt bit. Electrical wiring runs through the paneling to various spots, most notably into larger conduits that I believe may feed power to the four towers in the center," Watts spoke into his scroll. So far he'd been recording for fifteen minutes, most of which were observational notes. He continued his slow pace along one of the sturdy walkways. "The purpose of these towers is currently unknown. They could be generators. They could be some kind of weapon. Perhaps they could be a containment system, a prison of some sort. Visuals alone tell me very little."

Winter was not speaking into her scroll, but instead recording a video and taking a few pictures as she walked throughout the area. All around her various scientists and techs worked to do the same, with some cutting sections of the metal walls out for later study. So far she and Watts had stayed within the chamber, traversing the walkways and making recordings. But now, with the amount of help that was entering the chamber, the duo could move to one of the entryways that seemed to lead to other sections.

Watts eyed one of the cables built into the wall that curved around the corner of the doorway he was walking towards. The cable glowed much the same as the lights around them, although it was much brighter. "We're entering one of the side chambers now, which appear to have power running to them as well." Winter continued alongside him, keeping her attention on their surroundings. The metal door before them slid into the wall with a groan, stopping three-quarters of the way. It seemed that the door hadn't moved for a _long_ time.

The room they found themselves in was lit up by ceiling lights and a handful of lights on the wall. It was about the size of a living room, with another door to their left that looked like someone had tried to kick it in. Directly in front of them was a thirty-inch monitor, mounted in the wall above a metal table. Three seats were bolted to the floor, each with ruined cushions and a horrendous amount of dust. The table itself had three clear keyboards built into it, with what looked like a fist-sized projector in front of them. They glowed with the same white light as everything else, though it was visibly dimmer than the walls.

Winter walked towards the damaged door, looking for a panel or handle of some kind that would open it. Seeing that there wasn't one, she gave the edge of the door an experimental tug. Like the other door, it groaned as it started to slide into the wall. Unfortunately, due to the dent in it, the door stopped after opening only a quarter of the way. She peaked through the opening and saw that the other side was a hallway leading away and curving right.

"The passage goes deeper into the structure, but we'll need to remove this door if we want to keep going," she called over her shoulder.

"Later. Right now I'm interested in this." Watts blew the dust away from the keyboards. Able to see the keys better, his eyebrow raised when he saw the unknown symbols on each key. He spoke into his scroll once more, "The… lettering on the keyboards does not match up with any known language I have ever seen. And I can't tell what is a letter, what is a number, and what is punctuation."

Winter joined him, taking pictures of the table and monitor. "If this place has possibly been here for thousands of years… who built this? Remnant didn't have this kind of technology until the time of the Great War and after. And if this place _was_ built recently, _someone_ would have noticed its construction."

Watts ran his fingers over the center keyboard gently. "Indeed. I must admit, I find myself… excited about this."

"And how did the Grimm get inside here? This whole structure seems like a… like a base of some kind." Winter frowned as she looked around the room. "What the hell is all this?"

Watts didn't deign her with an answer, focused as he was on the technology before him. He pressed a couple of keys at random, getting no response from the monitor. The man looked to the chairs for a moment, then sat at the middle one. It creaked from his weight but luckily didn't break from its first use in who knows how long. He started to type at the keys, hoping that a random sequence of keystrokes would give him some sort of result. They stayed silent for several minutes, which Watts preferred while he was working. Winter kept her scroll on him, knowing that if he managed to access the computer it was in their best interest to have it on film.

She was about to suggest they assign someone to this task while they continued to look through the structure when the keyboard made some kind of chirping noise. The monitor, which had been powered down, suddenly turned on and showed what looked like a recording of some kind. The view was of the four towers in the center of the main chamber. It was obviously from some time in the past, as the towers were all standing and had no visible damage. And resting in the center was the very Grimm they'd been told of. It was held in the air with a series of yellow energy restraints, face tucked into its crossed arms and legs brought up to its chest. Its tailed floated around it, moving like it was wading in water.

Then a voice began to play from the speakers around the screen.

_"__Log Number 28: The creature has developed at an exceptional rate. Whereas a month ago it was only thirty meters tall, it has now grown to forty-five meters. Interestingly, the creature has begun to grow what can only be described as armor all over its body. A natural defensive trait perhaps? The Keizer Energy seems to be keeping stable, though I am cautious to admit success with Monster X since it has yet to awaken. __We'll be injecting cellular material from King Ghidorah next week, should the creature survive. None of the previous subjects reached that stage, which will present another unknown. __But this one… __"_ The voice paused for a moment as unknown symbols and a chart they couldn't make sense of were displayed. Then a tall, hooded figure walked into the shot, speaking into some kind of device. _"__Command is getting anxious with us. This is the tenth attempt at creating a weapon capable of matching King Ghidorah's power. Yuda has become rather impatient with our lack of progress, __constantly reminding us that he'll be on the chopping block if we fail. __I have no shame in saying I worry for my safety if this one does not make it. And he has been… talking about things that could have us all executed for treason. __Usurping the Controller and leading our people.__"_

"How peculiar…" Watts whispered to himself, intently watching the screen.

"I've never heard this language before. What are they saying?" Winter knew her question would likely not be answered, but she couldn't help but ask.

"They could be talking about anything. The Grimm, this place, or what they want to have for dinner. My expertise is in robotics and engineering, not linguistics," Watts responded, his eyes still locked on the monitor. "We didn't bring any with us, unfortunately. Send for some to get here, why don't you."

She again frowned at his unprofessional attitude, but she couldn't fault his suggestion. The figure on the screen started to talk again, so she waited to say anything more.

_"In my foolishness, I told Yuda I would go to the Controller about his plans. I felt if he were hit with a dose of reality, that he'd stop these crazy ideas and just fulfill his duty as Vice-Controller. But I underestimated his desires. He laughed, _laughed_, at the idea of me going to our leader __to oust him."_ They couldn't see the being's face, or understand the words, but its posture and tone told them it was upset about something. _"Yuda informed me that if I were to __reveal __anything he's said, that he will hurt my wife and children. 'They'll squeal like a targ in a slaughterhouse', was his exact threat. I can't afford to test whether that is an empty threat. He's crazy enough to go through with it, though he hides his psychopathy well when the Controller is around._

_ I have been leaving these logs, not just to report on the progress of our various kaiju, but as a testament. __In case… __I__n case I or my family are killed, these logs can be used to expose Yuda to the Controller, and the rest of the High Command. If that happens, then please, whoever finds this, don't let him get away with it."_ The hooded figure paused again, letting the recording device fall drop to its side. It held the other hand to its face, which was still out of view of the camera, looking like the weight of the world was on its shoulders.

**'****G****uuuuu****aaaaa****hhh****'**

The noise startled Watts and Winter, but not as much as it started the person in the video. They could see the Grimm in the background begin to move its head, fingers twitching slightly.

_"Is it…"_ The hooded person sounded nervous, holding the recording device tightly. A moment later, the Grimm slowly opened its eyes, blinking as it became more aware. _"Log Number 29: Monster X is awake at last. The project is, __miraculously,__ a success."_

The video finally ended, becoming dim as more illegible symbols appeared. Watts and Winter stood quiet, trying to gather their thoughts. When Winter had been given this assignment, she hadn't truly believed the briefing given to her. The word of civilians couldn't always be counted on for accuracy, after all. So to be told that the interior of the mountain was filled with machinery of unknown origin, in all honesty, she had dismissed the claims. She had been, and still was, more concerned about the giant Grimm some of the miners had filmed breaking out. However, now that she had seen the structure within, and watched a video showing the Grimm captive inside a containment field of some kind, the situation became infinitely more problematic.

What would General Ironwood decide to do next? The Atlas Council? How would the RDF handle this? They would send a fleet and the P.E.N.N.Y. unit to destroy the Grimm, but what was to be done with everything around her?

Her thoughts were interrupted by their scrolls suddenly blaring a loud, droning alert. It was a sound everyone that had a scroll was familiar with. She opened her scroll to see the message sent by the RDF, her jaw tightening as she read it.

**Kaiju Alert! Kaiju Alert! A Class-C kaiju is attacking ****the city of Kakuko. All residents are to make their way to the designated shelters in an orderly fashion.**

_Kakuko, Southeastern Sanus, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 3rd, 11:57 AM_

Men and women ran down the streets, or frantically drove vehicles, heading towards whatever shelter entrance was close. The sounds of their screams were drowned out by the cries of the 58-meter tall monster slamming its arm through an apartment complex. It raised its other arm and drove it into the building as well, the damage done too much for the structure, causing it to collapse. Dust expanded outward, covering the streets in a milky fog that choked everyone's lungs.

The monster was… ugly. It had bumpy, green skin like that of a toad, with tan abdominal muscles. A single line of orange horns ran from the top of its head to the bottom of its neck, sharp and curved forward. Burning orange eyes were set in a cat-like face. Disgusting brown teeth filled a sneering mouth, saliva dripping to the ground. The monster's hands and feet had a set of orange claws that looked ready to rend and tear flesh.

**'Heeeheeeheeeheee,'** the monster, Gabara, howled in pleasure as he brought a foot down on a small group of humans. Blood pooled underneath his foot, but Gabara didn't pause for a second as he tore into another building, some unlucky souls still inside when it imploded. Seeing another group of humans trying to run away, Gabara channeled electricity into his hands. The kaiju bent down and touched both hands to the ground, sending the electricity outward and into the tiny humans. Their bodies bursting into bloody mist was a sight he enjoyed immensely.

The bipedal apes would pay for what they'd done, no matter how much they tried to run.

_Beacon Academy, Vale, Remnant_

_78 AGW, May 3rd, 12:04 PM_

An Mk3 Manta began to power-up as the pilot activated all its systems. The machine was parked on the landing pad atop Beacon Tower, the personal vehicle of the Headmistress for situations just like this. Instead of the gray coloring of the Atlas models, this one was black, with green flames running along the bottom half. Also, unlike the Atlas version, the Mk3 had no onboard weaponry. The interior was almost spartan in how little it had aside from seating and a place on the back wall to hold equipment. It was designed for maximum speed. One needed it for the line of work its owner did.

The roof access door opened with force as a woman power-walked towards her transport. The wind generated from the Manta tussled the woman's white hair lightly. It was pulled into a tight ponytail to keep it from obstructing her vision, reaching the middle of her shoulders. Her skin was _pale_, like paper had been given human form. Around her black and red eyes were black veins that ran down her face and neck, disappearing behind her black leather, long-sleeved top. Sturdy gauntlets with three bulging ridges along the forearm covered her arms and hands. Black leather pants covered her legs, two large pouches were strapped to each leg, filled with various dust crystals and compact bombs. Her feet were protected by thick black boots, which had soles an inch thick to reduce the risk of something piercing her feet.

Attached to the back of her top was what looked like a silver-black high-tech snowboard. Close to the middle were two miniature turbines that had green blades. Between them was a powerful thruster shaped like a pentagon, attached to the underside of the board on a thick pivot. It was a very advanced piece of technology, made by her very own hands. And in said hands was a green mask with reflective lenses that would cover her mouth and nose when worn.

The woman stepped into the Manta and set her board into the clamps on the back wall. Secured, she sat in one of the seats and strapped in. As the Manta left the ground, she placed a set of headphones over her ears, the static cutting out when she spoke into the microphone, "Estimated time to arrive at Kakuko, Glynda?"

Glynda Goodwitch, her Deputy Headmistress and the only one she trusted to pilot, responded in an instant, "Twenty-five minutes at most. No troubling weather patterns have been reported, so it will be an easy trip."

"Good. The monster has already had fifteen minutes to run rampant. I'll rest easy when it's dead and the people are safe. Inform the RDF that I am on my way," the pale woman instructed.

"Of course. I'll coordinate with forces in the area to get an update on the evacuation as well," Glynda offered.

The woman nodded, a small smile gracing her lips. "I know you can handle it, but be careful once you're on the ground. I can't have my number two ditch me this close to the end of the semester."

"I wouldn't dream of it Salem. Besides," Glynda allowed herself to smirk a little, "no one would ever have a coherent class schedule if I let you put them together. One time was enough."

Salem, Queen of Vale, Headmistress of Beacon, and consultant to the Remnant Defense Force, chuckled. "Well, I can't disagree with you there. You are invaluable."


End file.
